1. The Network of Trilateral Cooperation of Think-tanks (NTCT) of the Republic of Korea, China and Japan will be formally launched on the sidelines of the second forum on humanities exchanges, which will be held in Changchun, China, on August 31.

- The NTCT, the establishment of which was proposed at the eighth ROK-China-Japan Trilateral Senior Foreign Officials' Consultation in November 2013, will be formally launched after relevant discussions among the three countries.

- The agencies of the three countries that will be responsible for the NTCT will be the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security (IFANS) under the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA), the Japan Forum on International Relations (JFIR) and the China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU).

2. At the second forum on humanities exchanges, which will take place in conjunction with the NTCT launching ceremony, experts of the three countries in the fields of foreign affairs, culture and media will exchange a wide range of views on “the ROK- China-Japan trilateral cooperation and the future of East Asia.”

3. The forum and the launching ceremony will bring together former Foreign Minister Gong Ro-myung, KNDA Chancellor Yun Duk-min and Research Director of IFANS' Center for Chinese Studies Chung Sang-ki from the ROK; former President Satsuki Eda of the House of Councillors and Yasuji Ishigaki, Vice President of the Council on the East Asian Community (CEAC) and Councilor of the JFIR from Japan; and former Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, Vice Chairman Wu Jianmin of the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy and CFAU President Qin Yaqing from China.

4. The NTCT, when launched, is expected to play a role in enhancing understanding among the three countries and winning support from the general public on trilateral cooperation, thereby contributing to advances in trilateral cooperation down the road.


* unofficial translation