Support for 'peace process' sought at ASEAN+3 event

President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook arrive in Bangkok for the ASEAN+3 and EAS summits, Sunday. Yonhap

No Moon-Abe talks planned on sidelines

By Do Je-hae

President Moon Jae-in embarked on three-day trip to Thailand, Sunday, to take part in an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.

The focus of Moon's trip will be to seek cooperation for the ASEAN-Republic of Korea (ROK) Commemorative Summit that will be held later this month in Busan, marking the 30th anniversary of establishing ties with ASEAN, according to Cheong Wa Dae. Moon also plans to discuss his peace efforts for the Korean Peninsula. “The President will explain our government's diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the establishment of permanent peace, and seek their support for advancing the peace process,” presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung said in a statement last week.

The President began his Bangkok trip with an evening gala Sunday ― after his arrival ― hosted by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha for the leaders and their spouses taking part in the summit. Today he will participate in the ASEAN+3 summit, followed by a luncheon on “sustainable development” and the East Asia Summit (EAS), including leaders from South Korea, China and Japan. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is also in Thailand, attending the summit and the EAS.

In addition, the President will also take part in a meeting of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) involving the 10 ASEAN members and South Korea, Japan, China, Australia and New Zealand, that is aimed at reaching a free trade agreement before the year's end. Moon will return to Seoul, Tuesday.

There is also keen interest in whether Moon and Abe, who have not held a summit since September 2018, will be able to share more than a handshake this time. Their last encounter at a multilateral diplomatic setting was at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. Abe refused to hold a separate meeting with Moon at the time. They will simultaneously take part in the ASEAN+3 and the RCEP summits.

With the cancellation of APEC in Chile, which Cheong Wa Dae had viewed as a chance to set up a meeting with the Japanese leader, some media outlets are speculating that Moon and Abe talks may happen on the sidelines of the ASEAN event. But Cheong Wa Dae has stated that no bilateral meeting has been planned for Moon and Abe in Bangkok. A Moon-Abe meeting is considered crucial to improving ties, particularly ahead of the termination of a military intelligence sharing pact, Nov. 22.

Abe has been reluctant to respond to Moon's calls for a summit and has continued to demand Korea stop its “breach of international law,” following a 2018 Supreme Court ruling that ordered Japanese firms to compensate South Koreans forced to work for them during wartime. Moon recently sent Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon to Japan to deliver a letter on his behalf aimed at improving relations.

The ASEAN trip is Moon's first official engagement following the funeral of his late mother Kang Han-ok last week.

Cheong Wa Dae had stressed that there would be no break in state affairs because of the President's personal circumstances. Moon came back to Seoul right after his mother's funeral mass last Thursday to prepare for the ASEAN event, showing the importance he places on strengthening cooperation with ASEAN to carry out his New Southern Policy.

Before leaving for Bangkok, Moon thanked the people their condolences, according to the presidential office.