After more than a four-year hiatus, China, South Korea and Japan have resumed their trilateral meetings. They made progress towards a trilateral free-trade agreement in two days of talks in Seoul. China’s premier Li Qiang urged Japan and South Korea to reject protectionism and uphold the values of economic globalization.

Joining the discussion: 

• Victor Gao is a chair professor at Soochow University.
• Einar Tangen is a Senior Fellow at the Taihe Institute and Chairman of Asia Narratives. 
• Jenny Town is a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center.
• Sourabh Gupta is Senior Asia-Pacific International Relations Policy Specialist at the Institute for China-America Studies.

The Chinese and Japanese premiers have arrived in South Korea for a rare trilateral summit. The meeting, the first such one in five years, indicates a desire for increased regional cooperation.https://t.co/gR1hUnVn73

— DW News (@dwnews) May 26, 2024

During the the ninth Trilateral Summit Meeting among the three countries held in Seoul on May 27, #China, #Japan, and #SouthKorea agreed to designate 2025-2026 as the China-Japan-South Korea Cultural Exchange Year. #CultureTourism pic.twitter.com/lz6kZpPUVo

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) May 27, 2024