South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Japanese Premier Yoshihiko Noda (Photo: Reuters)

The 5^th tripartite summit between China, Japan and South Korea opened on Sunday in Beijing with the attendance of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Japanese Premier Yoshihiko Noda and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. Addressing the opening ceremony, Mr. Wen said reality showed that the cooperation between the 3 countries matches their basic interests and provides strength for them to overcome difficulties and to seek common development. He added the summit is significant to regional peace and stability amidst lingering global financial crisis and uncertain European public debts. The Chinese Premier reiterated that there remain uncertainties in North-East Asia and East Asia. He said China, Japan and South Korea have agreed to start negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement this year. At this tripartite summit, the three countries will sign an agreement on investment facilitation and protection, an important legal document of trilateral economic cooperation.