Mori-Kim Summit Talks

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Mori-Kim Summit Talks

President Kim Dae-jung held a summit meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori at Chong Wa Dae May 29. The two heads of state agreed to cooperate closely for mutually positive effects in their nations' relationships with North Korea.

Prime Minister Mori said to President Kim, "Japan has a firm intention to succeed in normalizing ties with North Korea. During the inter-Korean summit talks in Pyongyang, please convey our stance to Kim Jong-il, North Korea's National Defense Commission chairman."

In response, President Kim said, "The improvement of relations between North Korea and Japan contributes to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. The South Korean Government will cooperate in the improvement of relations between North Korea and Japan."

After the talks, the two heads of state held a joint press conference. Concerning the question of whether President Kim will bring up the topic of North Korea's missile development during the Korean summit talks, he answered, "The agenda has not been firmed up yet, but the two heads of state should be able to speak freely to understand each other's thoughts."

Regarding the question of the controversy surrounding his remarks about Japan being "God's nation," Prime Minister Mori said, "I am sorry for causing misunderstanding because I failed to make myself clear. Personally, I do not believe in reviving the state-god religion under the sovereignty of the emperor which was in place before the war."

During the talks, President Kim requested that Korean residents in Japan be granted voting rights in Japanese local elections before the endof the year, to which Prime Minister Mori replied, "We will examine the matter seriously."

Additionally, President Kim disclosed that Korea would be implementing the third step in its plan to open the country to Japanese popular culture in the first half of this year, and asked the Japanese prime minister to make efforts to alleviate trade imbalances between the two nations.

The two heads of state agreed to conclude negotiations for the signing of a bilateral investment agreement this year, if possible, and vowed to cooperate for the success of the Okinawa G-8 summit talks in June and the Seoul Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in October. Prime Minister Mori left Korea after he met with Acting Prime Minister Lee Han-dong in the afternoon.

by Kim Jin-kook

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