Overview

• Japanese officials are arranging Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's first trip to South Korea since taking office for late September to meet President Lee Jae-myung.
• The visit would follow Lee’s August trip to Tokyo, advancing a reciprocal shuttle diplomacy framework between the two leaders.
• Talks are expected to focus on security coordination on North Korea, economic cooperation in light of recent U.S. tariff measures, and expanded people-to-people exchanges.
• Before the trip, Ishiba plans to attend the UN General Assembly in New York, where he is expected to reference his postwar 80-year view in his address.
• At home, Ishiba met Keidanren chief Yoshinobu Tsutsui to confirm government–business coordination on the U.S. tariff agreement and received Shinjiro Koizumi’s notice of an LDP leadership bid, urging continuity on regional revitalization and rice production policy.