(KUALA LUMPUR=Yonhap News) Reporters Lim Hyeong-seop and Seol Seung-eun = President Lee Jae-myung will unveil the 'CSP Vision' to strengthen cooperation between Korea and ASEAN countries at the Korea-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit scheduled for the 27th (local time), the Blue House announced on the 26th.
Wi Sung-rak, director of the National Security Office, who is visiting Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where the Korea-ASEAN summit is being held with the president, introduced this plan in a briefing that day.
At this meeting, the president is expected to present his intention to hold a special summit between Korea and ASEAN in 2029, the 40th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the two countries, and his plan to develop the"comprehensive strategic partnership" established last year.
Director Wi explained that a relationship development strategy was prepared in line with the English abbreviation for 'Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP).'
First of all, Director Wei said that the 'C' stands for 'Contributor' and that the purpose is to establish an institutional framework to support the dreams of ASEAN youth.
'S' stands for 'Springboard' for growth and innovation, and it plans to contain a vision for joint growth, including expansion of quantitative and qualitative exchanges between the two sides.
In the case of 'P', it stands for Partner for peace and stability, and it contains the meaning of strengthening investigative cooperation to ensure stability in the region and eradicate transnational crime.
The vice minister emphasized,"The importance of ASEAN to Korea cannot be overemphasized," and "Tomorrow's meeting will be the debut stage to showcase the Lee Jae-myung administration's emphasis on ASEAN."
It also left open the possibility of discussion on the issue of peace on the Korean Peninsula.
The vice minister said,"We are consulting with ASEAN on our overall North Korea policy and are trying to induce ASEAN's goodwill in this regard."
When asked whether there was a possibility of a statement being released regarding the Korean Peninsula issue, he replied,"I am not ruling out that possibility."
However, when asked whether the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the only regional multilateral security consultative body in which North Korea participates, could be used as a link to advance inter-Korean relations, he appeared cautious, saying,"I don't know what will happen next year, but so far this year, there has been no such opportunity."
Immediately following the Korea-ASEAN Summit, the 'ASEAN+3 (Korea, China, Japan)' Summit will be held.
Solutions related to financial and food security are expected to be discussed here, and this meeting is particularly noteworthy as it could be the first time President Lee will meet with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
The vice minister said,"We are preparing for the possibility of meeting with the leaders of China and Japan, but the overlap will not be long," adding,"It appears that full-scale talks will take place at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit."
Meanwhile, regarding his meeting with former Prime Minister Taro Aso and former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga during his visit to Japan on the 21st, Director Wi explained that they were"influential politicians in Japanese politics and have great influence on Korea-Japan relations," and that they expressed their intention to continue playing a role in the development of Korea-Japan relations in the future.
