Yoon, Japan’s Ishiba to hold 1st summit in Laos on sidelines of ASEAN summit

President Yoon Suk Yeol receives a bouquet upon arrival at Wattay International Airport in Vientiane, Laos, Wednesday. Yonhap

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba are set to hold their first summit on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos, Yoon’s office said Wednesday.

Yoon arrived in Vientiane, the Lao capital, for a three-day visit until Friday to attend the regional gatherings of the ASEAN. The exact date for their meeting has not yet been specified.

Last week, Yoon and Ishiba held their first phone talks, where they shared the need for bilateral cooperation as well as trilateral cooperation with the United States to deal with North Korean threats.

During the call, the leaders agreed to continue their regular “shuttle diplomacy” and meet at the earliest opportunity for candid discussions on bilateral relations and other shared concerns.

Bilateral ties have significantly improved after Yoon decided last year to resolve the long-running row over Japan’s wartime mobilization of Koreans for forced labor by compensating victims without asking Japanese firms for contributions.

Yoon and Ishiba’s predecessor, Fumio Kishida, had since restored the long-suspended shuttle diplomacy of visiting each other whenever necessary and held 12 summits over the last two years. (Yonhap)