Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori will make a one-day trip to Seoul on May 29 to hold informal talks with South Korean President Kim Dae Jung, Chief Cabinet Secretary Mikio Aoki said Tuesday.

Aoki told a regular press conference that now is "exactly the right time" for Mori and Kim to exchange views, as Japan's policy toward North Korea is at a turning point.

"It is important that Mori establish personal relations with Kim based on trust," Aoki said.

According to government sources, Mori intends to convey to Kim his hope for the success of the first-ever inter-Korean summit, slated for June 12-14 in Pyongyang, describing it as important for stability and peace in Northeast Asia. Kim will be meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

Mori wants to coordinate policies with Kim in connection with the second round in late May of senior-level negotiations between Japan and North Korea on normalizing diplomatic ties, the sources said.

Mori will also exchange views with Kim on the July 21-23 summit of the Group of Eight nations in Okinawa Prefecture, under Japan's initiative to hear Asian views and have them reflected in the summit as the chair nation, they said.

Japan and South Korea had been trying to arrange a visit to Japan by Kim sometime this month, but new political developments in both nations made it difficult to realize Kim's visit.

The new factors include the agreement between North and South Korea to hold a summit and the likelihood that Japan's Lower House will be dissolved for an election in late June.

Mori, who succeeded Keizo Obuchi as prime minister on April 5, believes it is necessary to build personal ties with Kim through direct talks at an early stage, the sources said.

Obuchi remains in a coma after suffering a severe stroke April 2.

The trip to South Korea will be Mori's second abroad since becoming prime minister. He visited Japan's G8 partners from April 28 to May 6 for his first talks with the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and the United States.