The Foreign ministers of China, South Korea and Japan converged
on Jeju Island, South Korea, on Sunday for a meeting at which they
pledged to press ahead with common development and safeguard
regional peace and stability.
At the one-day meeting, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi spoke on the common interests and
shared responsibility that all have in ensuring regional peace,
boosting common development and contributing to global harmony.
There was all-round agreement that cooperation between the three
powers would lead to better peace and stability as well as improved
common development in the region, said a spokesman for the Chinese
delegation.
The three sides pledged to work closer in boosting mutual
political trust, expanding mutually-beneficial cooperation and to
share positive and constructive roles in pushing forward
international and regional issues, said the spokesman.
The foreign ministers enjoyed a thorough exchange on a
wide-ranging agenda including investment, transportation,
environment and climate change as well as the Korean Peninsula
nuclear issue.
To this end, all parties called for the February 13 agreement to
be implemented early on and vowed to keep forging ahead with the
six-party process.
The day also saw one-on-one meetings between all the ministers.
According to Mitsuo Sakaba, press secretary of the Japanese Foreign
Ministry, Aso and Song's 40-minute meeting broached bilateral
issues and the nuclear affair.
Japan and South Korea will launch a new round of negotiation on
their exclusive economic zone issue on June 17-18 in Seoul whilst
their joint study of history will start its second phase on June 23
in Tokyo, Sakaba said.
Yang and Song were set to fly out to Seoul on Monday for the
Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), a regional forum scheduled to be
held in Seoul on Monday and Tuesday, with delegations in attendance
from 30 countries.
(Xinhua News Agency June 4, 2007)
