Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung vowed to deepen their nations’ relationship as the leaders met on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Alberta, Canada, in mid-June 2025.
“Under the current strategic environment, the importance of Japan-South Korea relations and Japan-U.S.-South Korea cooperation has not changed at all — rather, it has become more important,” Ishiba told reporters.
Lee, who took office in June, said Japan and South Korea have an “inseparable” relationship like “neighbors who share a front yard.” He and Ishiba were among the leaders of G7 nonmember states attending the annual meeting of the group of leading industrial nations, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Ishiba and Lee discussed strengthening trilateral cooperation with the U.S. to address geopolitical crises, Lee’s office stated. The U.S. has encouraged greater cooperation between Seoul and Tokyo to confront regional challenges such as North Korea’s nuclear threat and China’s rising assertiveness.
Lee said cooperation with Japan would be mutually beneficial and he called for improving ties in a “future-oriented manner.” Lee also has pledged to maintain security cooperation with Japan and the U.S., South Korea’s longtime treaty ally.
During the G7 summit, the three nations conducted a joint air drill off South Korea’s Jeju Island, the first such exercise under Lee’s presidency.
The G7 summit was Lee’s first international trip as president. In his meeting there with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lee promised to deepen strategic cooperation and highlighted South Korean investments in the South Asian country.
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