Delay expected in FM talks between S. Korea, China, Japan

By Lee Chi-dong

SEOUL, July 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korea, China, and Japan are highly likely to put off their annual foreign ministerial talks, slated for next weekend, due to Japan's domestic political schedule, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.

"Chances are high that the meeting will be postponed," ministry spokesman Moon
Tae-young said at a press briefing. He said it would be hard to hold the
trilateral talks in late July because of the political situation in Japan.
Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso plans to dissolve the House of Representatives
next week and a general election has been set for Aug. 30 in a hurriedly made
timetable after Aso's Liberal Democratic Party suffered a surprising defeat in
local elections on Sunday.
The three regional powers planned to hold a foreign ministerial meeting on July
25. China, which hosts this year's session, is set to announce the schedule
within this week. The three nations take turns hosting the trilateral meeting and
a summit between their leaders every year.
"China is likely to formally inform South Korea and Japan soon of its decision
to indefinitely postpone the foreign ministerial talks," another ministry
official said.
China is also expected to postpone the three-way summit scheduled to be held late
next month, he added.
He said that the summit and the foreign ministerial meeting will likely be held
in November or December.