A planned news conference between Japan’s vice foreign minister and his South Korean and US counterparts in Washington on Wednesday was cancelled due to a territorial dispute between the two US allies, a Japanese Embassy spokesperson told the media.
In the absence of South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong Kun and Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takeo Mori, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman was left to address questions on her own.
Sherman began by saying that ‘certain bilateral disputes between Japan and the Republic of Korea are still being settled,’ but that the cancellation of the joint press conference had nothing to do with the earlier trilateral meeting, which she described as ‘constructive and substantive.’
According to Sherman, the three officials discussed freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea, as well as their countries’ commitment towards advancing democratic values and human rights. They also reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining an Indo-Pacific region that is inclusive, free, peaceful, stable, and open.
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