Japanese media: Lee Jae Myung, Sanae Takaichi coordinating summit talks in Andong on the 19th

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[Financial News] It has been reported that arrangements are under way for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to visit South Korea and hold a summit with President Lee Jae Myung in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province.
On the 9th, Kyodo News and other local media reported that Takaichi is considering a trip to South Korea on the 19th for a summit with Lee to discuss economic security cooperation. They added that Andong, the president's hometown, is the leading venue under consideration.
This would be the first summit since Lee visited Nara Prefecture, Takaichi's hometown, in January for talks. The meeting is seen as an effort to deepen shuttle diplomacy between the leaders of South Korea and Japan by having Takaichi make a return visit to Lee's hometown.
Lee and Takaichi first met last October on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, where they agreed to actively pursue shuttle diplomacy. Lee later visited Nara Prefecture in January and held a summit there, in Takaichi's hometown and electoral district. The key topics at that meeting were restoring shuttle diplomacy, economic security cooperation, science and technology cooperation, managing historical issues, and coordinating security in Northeast Asia.
At this summit, the two sides are expected to discuss ways to secure crude oil, petroleum products, and related materials, given that both countries rely heavily on the Middle East for oil imports. Economic security cooperation on securing critical minerals is also likely to be on the agenda, as concerns have risen over China's export restrictions on rare earths to Japan.
With US President Donald Trump's visit to China and a US-China summit scheduled for the 14th and 15th of this month, the upcoming South Korea-Japan meeting could also address each country's China strategy depending on the outcome of those talks. The Japanese side is also expected to stress the importance of trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the United States, and Japan in countering North Korea's nuclear and missile development, while also raising the issue of Japanese abductees held by North Korea.
soup@fnnews.com Lim Subin Reporter