Japan’s outgoing Prime Minister Ishiba and South Korea’s Lee hold final summit in Busan

SEOUL South Korea AP Japan s outgoing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba held a summit Tuesday with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung as U S President Donald Trump s deal wars have pushed the two often-feuding Asian neighbors to seek to improve coordination The Ishiba-Lee meeting in the South Korean southeastern port city of Busan is their third and likely final summit Earlier this month Ishiba offered to resign as head of the governing Liberal Democratic Party and eventually prime minister over his ruling coalition s latest voting defeat triggering a contest to find his successor I look forward to exchanging thoughts on cooperation between the two governments further expansion in the cooperative bilateral partnership social challenges we both face such as declining population Ishiba reported in his brief departure comments in Japan Lee s national protection director Wi Sung-lac advised a briefing Monday that the summit would provide a venue to expand discussions in the midst of the rapidly changing geopolitical habitat and arrangement order Wi announced that the two leaders will discuss Ishiba s feasible progressing role in evolving bilateral ties even after his departure South Korea and Japan are both key U S allies and major trading partners But their ties have experienced constant shifts because of history disputes stemming from Japan s past colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula Relations have improved under Lee and Ishiba s predecessors But the departure of Ishiba who has acknowledged Japan s wartime aggression and shown empathy toward the Asian casualties could pose a challenge to Lee Both governments declared the summit was part of earlier agreements to maintain close communication and high-level exchanges between the countries No major announcement is expected after the summit and South Korean officers say the meeting would discuss population issues revitalizing rural areas and artificial intelligence South Korea and Japan have sought techniques to tackle together challenges like North Korea s nuclear operation and supply chain vulnerabilities They are now being pushed closer together by Trump s push to reset global pact South Korea and Japan have pledged hundreds of billions of dollars in U S industrial investments in hopes of avoiding the Trump administration s highest tariffs But South Korean officers acknowledge they remain at odds with Washington over how Seoul s proposed billion package would be structured and operated South Korean administrators have proposed delivering the venture through loans and loan guarantees and have balked at U S demands for upfront payments which they say would put the country at exposure of a financial predicament given the size of its foreign-currency reserves Unlike Seoul Tokyo has already put its bargain deal with Washington in writing Trump earlier this month signed an order to lower tariffs on Japanese automobiles and other critical imports from the initially proposed to while the two governments simultaneously signed a joint comment in Washington confirming billion in Japanese venture in U S projects Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this document Source