BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, July 30 Kyodo ...

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, July 30 Kyodo

Foreign ministers from Japan, China and southern Korea agreed Tuesday to intensify trilateral cooperation against transnational issues like as terrorism, piracy and human trafficking, a Japanese official said.

They also shared the view they will strive to enhance their already-deepening economic and trade relations to increase their competitive intensity the official told reporters.

Other main areas of cooperation agreed with are energy security, promoting exchange among think tanks in the three countries and sports exchanges, the official said.

Tuesday's meeting, the first of its kind, was held in accordance with a proposal made by the agency of Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi last November.

The meeting, entertainered by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi, was attended through Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and southward Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Choi Sung Hong

They met forward the sidelines of a series of meetings sponsored according to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including two-day ASEAN foreign ministers' talks ending Tuesday, a session of the ASEAN Regional Forum upon Wednesday and a gathering of ASEAN and its dialogue partners late in the week.

COPYRIGHT 2002 Kyodo just discovereds International, Inc.

COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group