Lee says S. Korea, Japan should explore new areas of cooperation to deepen ties

▲ President Lee Jae Myung (Yonhap)

Lee-Japan relations

Lee says S. Korea, Japan should explore new areas of cooperation to deepen ties

By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung said Monday that South Korea and Japan are important partners that share common values and have many areas of cooperation to further deepen bilateral ties.

Lee made the remarks in an interview with Japan's public broadcaster NHK, ahead of his visit to Japan's Nara Prefecture for summit talks with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday and Wednesday.

"Korea and Japan are very important to each other in that they share values and direction, and should complement each other to make up for their shortcomings," Lee said.

"There are many areas in which (the two countries) can both compete and cooperate, and I hope (we) can continue to identify fields where we can work together," he added.

The trip will mark Lee's fifth summit with a Japanese prime minister since taking office last June. He held three rounds of talks with Takaichi's predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, and held his first summit with Takaichi in October on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju.

Lee will visit the ancient city of Nara, Takaichi's hometown, as part of reciprocal leader-level visits dubbed "shuttle diplomacy" aimed at sustaining recent momentum in improved relations.

The meeting comes days after Lee's state visit to China for talks with President Xi Jinping, amid heightened tensions between Beijing and Tokyo following Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan.

The upcoming talks are expected to cover regional and global issues, including North Korea, as well as cooperation in the economy, society and culture, Cheong Wa Dae said.

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