Aso, Lee agree to enhance cooperation to overcome financial crisis

FUKUOKA, Dec. 13 Kyodo -
Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso and South Korean President Lee Myung Bak
agreed Saturday to step up cooperation to overcome the global financial crisis
and acknowledged a bilateral currency swap agreement to help stabilize foreign
exchange rates, Japanese government officials said.
In the talks held just ahead of the trilateral summit in Dazaifu, Fukuoka
Prefecture, which also involves Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, the Japanese and
South Korean leaders expressed ''regret'' over the lack of cooperation from
North Korea in verifying its denuclearization process during the recent
six-party talks in Beijing, the officials said.
Lee extended an invitation to Aso to visit his country at an early date next
year as a way to deepen bilateral relations through reciprocal visits by
leaders, and Aso was quoted as telling Lee that he ''would like to visit South
Korea at an early date.''
The currency deal agreed by Japan and South Korea has expanded the credit line
to $30 billion, which the monetary authorities of the two countries may
mobilize in order to stabilize the exchange rates.
The South Korean won has depreciated sharply against major currencies in the
wake of the global credit crisis. It reached historic low levels earlier this
month against the Japanese yen, for instance. South Korea is running out of
foreign currency reserves.
Aso and Lee also agreed to closely cooperate to seek progress in the six-party
talks to denuclearize North Korea, and noted on the importance of reinforcing
cooperation with the United States in the six-party talks under the new
administration of Barack Obama that comes into power next month, the officials
said.
Aso sought South Korea's cooperation on the issue of the abduction of Japanese
nationals, and Lee expressed his support for Japan's position, saying, ''I
understand the feelings of the families of the abduction victims and the
Japanese people more than anyone,'' the officials said.
Aso also called for the early resumption of talks with South Korea on a
bilateral free trade agreement, and Lee indicated that he would consider the
request in a forward-looking manner and continue working-level talks aimed at
resuming the negotiations, they said.
The bilateral FTA negotiations have been suspended since November 2004 because
Japan rejected South Korea's demand to open its market to agricultural
products.
Aso and Lee also agreed to cooperate on measures to counter terrorism following
the terrorist attacks last month in Mumbai.
At the outset of the meeting, Aso told Lee, ''It is very important for leaders
of the key neighboring countries hold meetings in various forms to develop
closer relations, so we can discuss many issues on the international community
and our joint efforts.''
Lee said he would like to make the peoples of the two countries feel ''close to
each other, both geographically and emotionally.''
Meanwhile, the two stayed away from touchy issues such as differences in their
perceptions of history and the territorial dispute involving the islets in the
Sea of Japan, called Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in South Korea.
Bilateral relations dampened in July when Japan decided to refer to the two
uninhibited islets as its territory in a teaching guideline, drawing strong
protests from South Korea.
==Kyodo