Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said on Tuesday that the country has postponed hosting a trilateral summit between Japan, China and South Korea that was set to be held in Tokyo later this month.
"We had been planning to host the summit between Japan, China and South Korea by the end of this year. But due to various circumstances, we will rearrange it and hold it in Japan at a suitable time next year," said Kishida.
He also said that the trilateral meeting is "very important" and that Japan hopes to convene it "as soon as possible."
Japan had been trying to bring forth the annual trilateral summit in December, but whether the scandal-hit South Korean President Park Geun-hye could attend the meeting remained uncertain.
Park, who has been embroiled in a corruption and influence-peddling scandal since late October, was stripped of her powers last week following an impeachment vote in parliament.
China, Japan and South Korea have been taking turns to hold trilateral summits since 2008, despite a halt in 2013 and 2014 due to heightened regional tensions.
The sixth China-Japan-South Korea leaders' meeting was held in Seoul, South Korea in November last year.
