Top Chinese Diplomat Proposes Talks With Japan, South Korea

Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi has proposed high-level talks between China, Japan, and South Korea in a meeting with the Japanese foreign minister in Indonesia this month.

Report says the proposal is seen as signaling a willingness to resume talks among the three countries and Japan would accelerate preparations to make it happen by the end of the year.

US allies Japan and South Korea are wary of China’s increasing military assertiveness and of growing tensions between China and the US over a range of issues including trade and self-ruled Taiwan.

China’s foreign ministry did not immediately comment and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo could not be reached for comment.

Meanwhile, Wang and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi met on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN meeting in Indonesia on July 14.

They discussed a Japanese plan to discharge into the sea treated radioactive water from its wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant but they fell short of an agreement.

Report says the issue of the water could be a sticking point preventing an early meeting of leaders of the three countries.

The last time the three countries’ leaders met was in December 2019.

REUTERS/Christopher Ojilere