Asia - Pacific

New South Korean Foreign Minister Cho holds 1st call with Japanese counterpart

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung holds calls with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev

Saadet Gokce  | 24.07.2025 - Update : 24.07.2025
New South Korean Foreign Minister Cho holds 1st call with Japanese counterpart

​​​​​​​ISTANBUL

New South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held his first call Thursday with Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi, according to Japan.

They affirmed their support to "continue to progress the Japan-South Korea relations stably," said a statement from the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Iwaya expressed a willingness to work "closely together on issues regarding North Korea including the nuclear and missile issues as well as the abductions issue," it said.

Cho emphasized the significance of Japan-South Korea relations, while describing ties as a key axis of the government's pragmatic diplomacy, alongside trilateral cooperation with Washington, according to Yonhap News.

Also, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held separate calls Thursday with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Lee and Merz discussed ties.

Mirziyoyev and Lee, on the other hand, exchanged views on enhancing the "special strategic partnership" between South Korea and Uzbekistan, and general relations.

Lee asked the Uzbek president to focus on the problems South Korean enterprises face in Uzbekistan.

Kristersson and Lee agreed to work closely to advance "friendly and cooperative relations across a wide range of areas including the economy, defense and defense industry, and culture," Lee wrote on X.

Tokayev and Lee agreed on the need to develop the strategic partnership to a higher level. Lee asked Tokayev to offer support for South Korean companies’ advancement into Kazakhstan.

South Korea also confirmed that one of its military aircraft entered Japanese airspace earlier this month due to a diversion, causing Tokyo to send a fighter jet to investigate.​​​​​​​

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