China's foreign ministry on Monday announced that Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will visit Seoul from October 31 to November 2. He will attend the China-Japan-South Korea trilateral summit, the first in three years.
Hua Chunying, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, said at a daily news briefing that the trilateral cooperation is part and parcel of East Asian cooperation and a major driving force for regional collaboration, delivering tangible benefits to people from the three countries.
The three-way-talks had been an annual occurrence from 2008, however, historical disputes have severely hampered cooperation. A series of moves by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, including visiting and sending offerings to the Yasukuni Shrine and repeated attempts to whitewash Japan's wartime crimes, have become a stumbling block in easing frictions and maintaining healthy relationships with its neighbors. Not only that, the sudden illegal "nationalization" of the Diaoyu Islands in 2012 led to a dramatic deterioration in Beijing-Tokyo ties. Eventually, the mechanism for the trilateral summit stalled.
Over the years, distrust over historical and political issues among the three countries has attracted more attention than their increasing trade volume. These three major economies in Asia are surrounded by numerous opportunities to cooperate, yet there is not enough genuine effort for a complete reconciliation or overall collaboration.
Take economic cooperation. China, South Korea and Japan have all signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), but they don't have such an FTA of their own, despite this initiative being raised over a decade ago. If established, the agreement will become a driving force to boost East Asia's economy and promote regional integration.
If the three-party meeting goes ahead smoothly, it will set the stage for leaders from the three countries to further deepen and increase benign cooperation with each other, while enhancing mutual trust.
The three should also overcome external interference and contribute to promoting East Asian integration, because this is a choice that will benefit the three countries the most.
The potential for such collaboration far exceeds the obstacles. The divergences and difficulties should be managed so that there can be resolutions, rather than exaggerations. The three can enjoy fruitful results from jointly working and learning from each other. It is hoped that the upcoming trilateral summit will set a clearer direction for China-Japan-South Korea cooperation in the future, as well as providing a new opportunity for East Asian integration.
