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Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi arrived at Jeju Island, South Korean south-most holiday resort, Wednesday afternoon for a two-day trip. He is scheduled to discuss issues of mutual concern in an informal atmosphere with ROK President Roh Moo-hyun on Thursday morning.
Upon arriving at Jeju International Airport, Koizumi rushed to the Shilla Hotel, the venue for the summit, to begin a scheduled two-hour meeting with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun, according to South Korean Yonhap News Agency.
Previously, South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula would top the agenda of the Seoul-Tokyo summit.
"We basically have some strategic goals, and the first one is enhancing bilateral cooperation to further develop the situation at a time when we see a growing momentum on the nuclear issue," Ban said on Tuesday.
Roh-Koizumi's meeting came about one month after the third round of six-nation meetings held in late June on the nuclear issue.
Ban said Roh and Koizumi will also discuss ways to expedite the ongoing negotiations for the signing of a Free Trade Agreement that the leaders agreed on during their last summit in Bangkok in October last year.
Among other topics are a future-oriented bilateral relationship, strategic cooperation to achieve in the area of Northeast Asia, the spreading of the so-called "Korean wave" in Japan and other cultural exchanges, and ways to help the Iraqi interim government settle in smoothly.
The two nations will mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations next year.
Ban also stressed that the summit "will be a very informal" one that no protocol or joint statement will be attached to. Instead, Roh and Koizumi will hold joint press conference later Wednesday.
It is the fifth meeting between Roh and Koizumi since the former 's inauguration in February last year.
The first was held in Seoul just hours after Roh took office, the second in June last year when Roh visited Tokyo, and the third and fourth in Bali, Indonesia, and Bangkok, Thailand, in October last year on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus 3 summit and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2004)
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