South Korea: Seoul, Beijing, and Tokyo to strengthen trade cooperation

Seoul, March 30 (LaPresse) – The top trade officials of South Korea, China, and Japan discussed today strengthening trade cooperation among the three countries during their first trilateral ministerial meeting in six years. The 13th trilateral meeting of the economy and trade ministers of the Republic of Korea, Japan, and the People's Republic of China took place in Seoul, with the participation of South Korean Minister of Industry Ahn Duk-geun, Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao, and Japanese Minister of Commerce Yoji Muto. This was the first time since December 2019 that the industry ministers of the three nations held a trilateral meeting, and the first such meeting in Seoul in 10 years. "In the context of a rapidly changing global economic and trade environment, the meeting of trade ministers of the three countries, held for the first time in six years, is of significant importance not only for the three nations but also for the international community," said Ahn in his opening speech. In a joint statement issued after the meeting, the three ministers expressed support for a "rule-based, open, inclusive, transparent, and non-discriminatory multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization at its center." The next trilateral meeting of the economy and trade ministers of South Korea, China, and Japan will be held in Japan.