In a sign of a warming relations among Japan, China and South Korea, the leaders of the three countries agreed Sunday to revive their annual trilateral summit after a 3½-year hiatus, with plans to meet in Japan next year.
Despite disputes over territory and wartime history, the trio pledged to improve their partnership in the spirit of "facing history squarely and advancing toward the future," South Korean President Park Geun-hye said at a joint news conference with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang after the summit in Seoul.
The leaders agreed to speed up negotiations on a three-way free trade agreement encompassing 20 percent of the world's economy, and to build cooperation on a range of other areas, Park said.