The leaders of Japan and South Korea met on Saturday and pledged to enhance cooperation between the two countries, saying economic and security challenges require them to step up bilateral relations.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held their bilateral meeting in Tokyo that lasted about two hours. Lee heads to the U.S. next to meet President Donald Trump.

“We agreed to build a virtuous cycle in which advances in bilateral relations between South Korea and Japan contribute to stronger trilateral cooperation with the U.S.,” Lee said at a joint press conference with Ishiba after their meeting.

They agreed to work together on issues ranging from denuclearizing North Korea to artificial intelligence, and will develop a consultative framework to

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