Seoul, Tokyo arranging Lee-Takaichi summit in mid-January in Japan's Nara: report
Korean President Lee Jae Myung, right, poses for a photo with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ahead of their pull-aside meeting held on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Nov. 23. Yonhap
Korea and Japan have been making arrangements for summit talks between President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in mid-January in the Japanese prefecture of Nara, a Japanese media report said Thursday.
The two nations were arranging to hold a summit between Lee and Takaichi in Nara, the capital city of Nara Prefecture, around Jan. 13-14, Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported, citing diplomatic sources.
Todaiji Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its Great Buddha Statue, is considered as a possible summit venue, the report said. Nara is Takaichi's home prefecture.
Lee and Takaichi last held summit talks on Oct. 30 on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in the Korean city of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, and briefly met on the margins of the Group of 20 leaders' gathering in South Africa last month.
The trip, if realized, will mark Lee's second visit to the neighboring country after he visited Tokyo in August and held summit talks with Takaichi's predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba.
It would also reflect commitments made by the leaders of the two countries to continue the positive momentum in bilateral ties through "shuttle diplomacy," or reciprocal visits.
Lee has pledged to advance ties with Japan under a two-track approach that promotes future-oriented cooperation while separately addressing historical and territorial issues.
Tension remains, however, as Lee's office recently reaffirmed the easternmost islets of Dokdo are indisputably Korea's territory, rejecting Takaichi's renewed territorial claims to Dokdo.