MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th November, 2022) Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and other leaders of the countries participating in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Plus Three (ASEAN Plus Three) summit in Cambodia discussed ways to expand multilateral cooperation, situation in the Indo-Pacific, Ukraine and around North Korea, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.
"Prime Minister Kishida expressed Japan's intention to steadily promote initiatives, including in new areas such as the digital economy and resilient agriculture, based on the new ASEAN Plus Three Cooperation Work Plan starting next year," the message released following the summit read.
During the meeting, the leaders discussed cooperation between countries in the region in such areas as maritime partnership and sustainable development goals.
Different regional issues including the situation in Ukraine, recent missile launches conducted by North Korea and developments in Myanmar were also on the agenda.
"Prime Minister Kishida expressed his intention to deepen cooperation under ASEAN Plus Three framework in order to maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law, not force, in the region," the press release said.
Kishida is expected to take part in the East Asia Summit, which will also take place in Cambodia on Saturday. Next week, Kishida is going to attend the G20 summit in Indonesia and the meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Thailand as part of his trip to Southeast Asia.
The ASEAN Plus Three consists of 10 ASEAN states as well as China, Japan and South Korea.
