Unification Minister Kwon Youngse meets with top Japanese officials to explain unification and North Korean policies and discuss ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation
Minister Kwon Youngse visits Japan (March 22-25)
Meeting with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno (March 23)

Minister Kwon, who visited Japan to attend the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s ministerial-level invitation program, met with Japanese government officials, politicians, and experts to discuss Seoul-Tokyo cooperation on unification and North Korean policies.

Meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi (March 23)

On March 23, Unification Minister Kwon Youngse met with Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and then with Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno to express the Yoon administration’s gratitude to the Japanese government for supporting the “Audacious Initiative,” and they decided to strengthen bilateral cooperation on the Korean Peninsula, including on nuclear, missiles, and abductees issues.

Moreover, on the morning of March 23, Minister Kwon met with Japan’s former Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide who is set to assume the position of president of the Korean-Japanese Parliamentarians’ Union, and asked for Japan’s support, stressing the need for cooperation between the two nations regarding denuclearization, human rights, humanitarian assistance, and abductees in North Korea.

Following the meeting, on the evening of March 23, Minister Kwon held a meeting with Korean residents in Japan, including members of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council and Unification Education Council to explain the Korean government’s policies on unification and North Korea, and asked for their support and cooperation to further Korea-Japan ties.