South Korean President Moon Jae In will likely visit Japan to hold a summit meeting with the prime minister by the end of this year, it has been learned.
The Japanese and South Korean governments are believed to be working out the schedule with an eye on October, as the month will mark the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Japan-South Korea Joint Declaration in 1998, which stipulated that the two countries would build a future-oriented relationship, according to sources.
Excluding attendance at international conferences, the summit would be the first visit to Japan by a South Korean president since Lee Myung Bak in December 2011.
The Japanese and South Korean leaders hope the planned talks provide momentum for an improvement in bilateral ties, which have soured over such issues as comfort women and the Takeshima islands in Shimane Prefecture. They will also reconfirm cooperation between their countries toward the denuclearization of North Korea.
In February, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited South Korea to attend the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympics.
If Moon visited Japan for purposes other than attending an international conference by the end of this year, reciprocal visits between the two leaders would be realized in the same year.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
