Foreign Minister to Korea-Japan visit tomorrow "will confirm the importance of Korea-Japan-Korea-Japan relations"

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said he would like to confirm the importance of cooperation between Korea and Japan in relation to his first visit to South Korea since taking office tomorrow (13th).

Foreign Minister Iwaya appeared on the public broadcaster NHK program and answered the question, "Why are you visiting Korea amid the turmoil in Korean politics?"

"There were times when relations with South Korea temporarily cooled, but they improved considerably during the time of former Prime Minister Kishida," Iwaya said. "We need to keep this momentum going forward."

He then said, "We will pay close attention to the domestic trend in Korea and continue to watch it," and emphasized, "I want to stabilize as soon as possible and strengthen the relationship between Korea and the U.S. and Japan."

Foreign Minister Iwaya, who took office in October last year, will visit South Korea tomorrow (13th) to hold a meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yeol.

At the talks, the two sides are expected to agree to cooperate for the development of relations with the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations this year, regardless of the political situation in Korea.

There will also be an exchange of opinions on the Korea-China-Japan summit scheduled to be held in Japan this year.

The foreign ministers of South Korea and Japan have spoken on the phone twice since the emergency martial law crisis in South Korea on the 3rd of last month, but this is the first time they have met in person.