Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2023

August 18, 2023

We, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, President Yoon Suk Yeol, and President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., affirm a shared vision for our partnership as well as for the Indo-Pacific and beyond. Our partnership is based on a bedrock of shared values, mutual respect, and a unified commitment to advance the prosperity of our three countries, the region, and the globe. As we move forward, we intend our partnership to be guided by these principles:

As Indo-Pacific nations, Japan, the Republic of Korea (ROK), and the United States will continue to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific based on a respect for international law, shared norms, and common values. We strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.

The purpose of our trilateral security cooperation is and will remain to promote and enhance peace and stability throughout the region.

Our commitment to the region includes our unwavering support for ASEAN centrality and unity and the ASEAN-led regional architecture. We are committed to partnering closely with ASEAN to advance implementation and mainstreaming of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo- Pacific.

We are determined to work closely with Pacific Island countries and the Pacific Islands Forum as the region's leading institution, consistent with the Pacific Way.

We stand united in our commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in accordance with relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. We remain committed to dialogue with the DPRK with no preconditions. We seek to address human rights and humanitarian issues, including the immediate resolution of the issues of abductions, detainees, and unrepatriated prisoners of war. We support a unified Korean Peninsula that is free and at peace.

We reaffirm the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element of security and prosperity in the international community. Recognizing that there is no change in our basic positions on Taiwan, we call for a peaceful resolution of cross- Strait issues.

As leading global economies, we seek continued opportunity and prosperity for our peoples, the region, and the globe through open and fair economic practices that promote financial stability as well as orderly and well-functioning financial markets.

Our technology cooperation will contribute to the vibrance and dynamism of the Indo- Pacific as we cooperate towards open, accessible, and secure technology approaches based on mutual confidence, trust, and respect for relevant international law and standards. We will seek to develop standard practices and norms between our countries and within international bodies to guide the development, use, and transfer of critical and emerging technologies.

Our countries are committed to cooperation to address climate change and will work together to provide leadership and solutions through relevant international institutions. We are committed to enhancing our development and humanitarian response cooperation to collectively overcome global issues and the root causes of insecurity.

We are unflinching in our commitment to uphold the principles of the UN Charter, particularly those relating to sovereignty, territorial integrity, the peaceful settlement of disputes, and the use of force. A threat to these principles anywhere undermines respect for them everywhere. As responsible state actors, we seek to promote the rule of law and to ensure regional and international security so all can flourish.

Our countries are dedicated to honoring our commitments to non-proliferation as parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. We reaffirm that achieving a world without nuclear weapons is a common goal for the international community, and we continue to make every effort to ensure that nuclear weapons are never used again.

Our countries are only as strong as our societies. We reaffirm our commitment to promoting the full and meaningful participation of women in our societies and to human rights and dignity for all.

We announce these shared principles at the start of our new chapter together, with the belief that they will continue to guide our trilateral partnership for years to come.

Above all, we recognize that we are stronger, and the Indo-Pacific is stronger, when Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the United States stand as one.

NOTE: An original was not available for verification of the content of this joint statement.

Categories: Joint Statements : Japan, Prime Minister Kishida; Joint Statements : South Korea, President Yoon.

Names: Kishida, Fumio; Yoon Suk Yeol.

Subjects: Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); China, political status of Taiwan; Climate change; Free and fair trade; Indo-Pacific, economic and security cooperation; Japan, defense relationship with U.S.; Japan, Prime Minister; Japan, relations with South Korea; Japan, relations with U.S.; North Korea, international sanctions; North Korea, nuclear weapons development; North Korea, past abductions of Japanese citizens; Nuclear weapons, nonproliferation efforts; Science and technology, international cooperation; South Korea, defense relationship with U.S.; South Korea, President; South Korea, relations with Japan; South Korea, relations with U.S.; Taiwan, political status with respect to mainland China; Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

DCPD Number: DCPD202300705.