Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun is scheduled to meet with Shinjiro Koizumi, the Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the second son of former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, next week. Amid mounting pressure for Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba to resign, Koizumi is being prominently mentioned as a leading candidate for the next Japanese prime minister.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 8, Minister Cho is set to hold talks with Minister Koizumi at the Government Complex Seoul Annex on August 11 in the afternoon. Koizumi is visiting Korea to attend the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Food Security Ministers’ Meeting and the Korea-Japan-China Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting, both of which will be held in Incheon over two days starting August 9.
Minister Koizumi attracted attention at a previous international event when he remarked on climate change measures, saying, "It's got to be fun, it's got to be cool. It's got to be sexy too." This comment made him popular among Korean netizens, who nicknamed him "FunCoolSexyJwa," and contributed to his friendly image as a Japanese politician. During his meeting with Minister Cho, a wide range of issues of mutual interest are expected to be discussed, including tariff negotiations with the United States.
An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "Our government is pursuing various high-level exchanges to build a more solid and mature Korea-Japan relationship, and the meeting with Minister Koizumi is part of these efforts."
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