Int'l Forum for Trilateral Cooperation among China, Japan, ROK held in Seoul

Guests participate in the International Forum for Trilateral Cooperation (IFTC) 2024 held in Seoul, South Korea, June 18, 2024. (Xinhua)

While embracing differences, the three countries must pursue coexistence and harmony, continuously expanding the base of future cooperation through mutual respect and benefits, said TCS Secretary-General Lee Hee-sup.

SEOUL, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS) hosted the International Forum for Trilateral Cooperation (IFTC) 2024 on Tuesday here in Seoul, under the theme "25th Anniversary of Trilateral Cooperation: Institutionalizing Collaboration and Promoting Exchanges for a Brighter Future".

In the opening session, TCS Secretary-General Lee Hee-sup delivered the opening remarks. He acknowledged the complex global crises and challenges that China, Japan and South Korea have been facing together, and recalled that trilateral cooperation, in the past 25 years, had evolved from efforts to overcome crises and had continuously grown by turning challenges into opportunities.

He emphasized that while embracing differences, the three countries must pursue coexistence and harmony, continuously expanding the base of future cooperation through mutual respect and benefits.

Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS) Secretary-General Lee Hee-sup addresses the opening of the International Forum for Trilateral Cooperation (IFTC) 2024 held in Seoul, South Korea, June 18, 2024. (Xinhua)

In the two subsequent sessions, namely "Vision for a Shared Future: Lessons from the Past and the Road Forward" and "Digital Nexus: In Search of Solution for Descending Mutual Perception in Trilateral Cooperation", veteran politicians, high-level officials, diplomats, prominent scholars and experts reviewed the past cooperation among the three countries, which is currently facing a crisis of mutual trust. They diagnosed the current phenomenon, and shared insights on future directions and ways to enhance mutual understanding in the digital era.

Since 2011, the IFTC has been one of TCS's annual flagship projects, raising public awareness of trilateral cooperation and providing in-depth policy references on advancing it among the three governments.