Telephone Conversation between Mr. Naoto Kan, Prime Minister of Japan, and Mr. Lee Myung-bak, President of the Republic of Korea

August 10, 2010
Japanese

Mr. Naoto Kan, Prime Minister of Japan, held a telephone conversation with Mr. Lee Myung-bak, President of the Republic of Korea (ROK), for about 20 minutes from around 11:05 a.m. on August 10 (Tuesday).

In the conversation, Prime Minister Kan explained about the contents of the Prime Minister’s Statement decided by the Cabinet on the morning of August 10, stating that this year marks a significant juncture in the Japan-ROK relation, and the Prime Minister himself as well as the member of his Cabinet have a strong will to make efforts to strengthen the future-oriented bilateral relations, while looking towards the coming 100 years and reflecting on what should be reflected on without looking away from the past history. Prime Minister Kan added that the statement issued today shows these ideas.

In response, President Lee expressed his appreciation for the great efforts made sincerely by Prime Minister Kan in the process leading up to the announcement of the statement, and said that the ROK Government highly valued the statement. President Lee added that the statement would create an excellent and great opportunity to develop the ROK-Japan relationship towards the future. He also expressed his hope that the two countries would strengthen the bilateral cooperation toward the future with sincerity and wisdom for the peace and prosperity of Northeast Asia.

The two leaders shared the recognition that it is of great importance to deepen and thicken the bond between Japan and the ROK which share such common values as democracy, freedom, and market economy and are both allies of the United States. Prime Minister Kan mentioned that he supports the ROK people’s wish for the peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula in the future. President Lee expressed gratitude for this remark.

The two leaders, noting that they will visit each other’s country on the occasion of the G-20 and APEC summits in November, affirmed that they would continue to closely cooperate with each other.

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