| bibo:abstract |
1. Introduction
2. Key Points of the Ninth ROK-Japan-China Trilateral Summit
3. Main Takeaways from Bilateral Summits
4. Assessment
Introduction
On May 27, 2024, the Ninth Trilateral Summit among the Republic of Korea (ROK), Japan, and China convened in Seoul, with the participation of President of the ROK Yoon Suk Yeol, Prime Minister of Japan Kishida Fumio, and Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Li Qiang. This Summit was held approximately four and a half years after the previous one in Chengdu, China in December 2019. Since the Trilateral Summit among the ROK, Japan, and China was held in Fukuoka in December 2008, the three countries have agreed to regularize the Summit and have since aimed to hold it annually on a rotating basis in their respective countries. The Trilateral Summit was suspended during 2013-2014 and 2016-2017 due to historical disputes and conflicts over Dokdo and the Senkaku (Diaoyu) Islands. In the 2020s, in addition to historical tensions, the outbreak of COVID-19 and intensifying strategic competition between the U.S. and China led to a cooling of relations between the ROK and China as well as between China and Japan, resulting in the Trilateral Summit not being held for over four years.
This Trilateral Summit was held amid the strategic competition between the U.S. and China, highlighting significant differences in the positions of the ROK, China, and Japan on various issues. These include global and regional security dynamics, direction of economic security and regional economic cooperation, perceived threat from North Korea's growing nuclear capabilities, and responsibility for the war in Ukraine. The resumption of the Trilateral Summit can be attributed to several factors: normalization of ROK-Japan relations following the inauguration of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration; shift to "management mode" in U.S.-China relations after the Summit between U.S. and Chinese leaders last November; shared interests of the ROK and Japan in restoring relations with China, their largest trading partner; and China's interest in revitalizing its cooling economy and countering the security cooperation among the ROK, the U.S., and Japan.
As the chair country of this Trilateral Summit, the ROK efficiently managed the proceedings, showcasing its diplomatic leadership. The ROK government secured Japan's support for holding the ROK-Japan-China Trilateral Summit following improved ROK-Japan relations after the Camp David Summit last August. Moreover, the ROK government coordinated the timing and agenda for the Trilateral Summit with China through active communication including the Korea-Japan-China Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul’s visit to China, and the Korea-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. Hence, the ROK played a leading role in the adoption of the joint declaration and annexed documents at the Trilateral Summit.
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