President Lee Jae-myung, visiting Japan for the South Korea-Japan summit, met with key figures in the Japanese political scene, including former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, on the 24th and said, "As close neighbors, the two countries should communicate closely and cooperate together in the face of global environmental changes." This was the first time President Lee met with former Prime Minister Suga in over a month; he had previously received Suga at the end of last month as the first foreign guest after taking office.
According to Spokesperson Kang Yu-jeong, former Prime Minister Suga and executives of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarian Association, along with Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party, attended the meeting. President Lee noted that during a summit and dinner the previous day with Shigeru Ishiba, he confirmed that when South Korea and Japan work together, they can create greater mutual benefits.
He also expressed pleasure at having the opportunity to have another conversation with former Prime Minister Suga in Tokyo, following their initial meeting as the first foreign guest after his inauguration in July, and highly evaluated the activities and contributions of the parliamentarian association for the development of South Korea-Japan relations.
Former Prime Minister Suga and the executives of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarian Association evaluated the successful hosting of the South Korea-Japan summit and expressed their welcome that President Lee chose Japan as his first overseas visit despite his busy schedule. Former Prime Minister Suga responded, "I want to set a record for how often I meet President Lee Jae-myung," which brought smiles among the attendees, according to Spokesperson Kang.
Both sides agreed that there are many areas where South Korea and Japan can collaborate in economics, industry, and other fields, and that there is significant cultural complementarity. They also promised cooperation under the common goal of 'future-oriented win-win cooperation' and expressed agreement on the importance of cooperation between politicians of both countries and diplomatic efforts led by the South Korea-Japan and Japan-South Korea Parliamentarian Associations.
President Lee also met with Noda and the delegation from the Constitutional Democratic Party. Spokesperson Kang stated, "President Lee and Leader Noda evaluated the increase in people-to-people exchanges between South Korea and Japan and the growing mutual understanding and friendly perceptions between their citizens," adding that they agreed on the importance of ongoing communication and cooperation at both government and parliamentary diplomatic levels to build a robust and mature South Korea-Japan relationship.