Biden thanks Yoon, Kishida for easing his workload

U.S. President Joe Biden, Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio stand for a photo ahead of a trilateral meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Week in San Francisco, Calif., Nov. 16. AFP-Yonhap

U.S. President Joe Biden thanked Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday for easing his load in performing his duties as president of the United States, a Korean official said.

Biden made the remark as the three leaders talked for about 10 minutes following a trilateral photo session at the Moscone Center on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco, according to Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo.

"President Biden said that thanks to President Yoon Suk Yeol and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, he was able to greatly reduce his load in carrying out his duties as president of the United States," Kim told reporters.

Biden was likely referring to Yoon and Kishida's efforts to mend bilateral ties, a partnership key to the implementation of U.S. policy for the Indo-Pacific region.

The three last held a trilateral summit at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland in August.

During Thursday's exchange, Yoon mentioned his philosophy regarding the correlation between national security and economic issues and expressed his belief that Biden and Kishida share the sentiment, according to a senior presidential official.

The official also said the three leaders appeared to be satisfied with the comprehensive cooperation mechanisms established during the Camp David summit and the active operation of high-level trilateral channels to put them into practice.

"There is a tacit consensus among the three leaders that security and economic cooperation are two sides of a coin," the official said. "Partners in advanced technology cooperation are those that can be trusted nearly 100 percent in terms of political systems, ideologies and values, and the three leaders believe Korea, the U.S. and Japan have such a relationship." (Yonhap)