Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in Bali, Indonesia, Tuesday proposed a "Tripartite Committee" of China, Japan and South Korea be established as soon as possible and the establishment of a China-Japan-South Korea Free Trade Area be further studied.

Wen made the proposal at the fifth meeting of Chinese, Japanese and South Korean leaders Tuesday which concentrated on discussing cooperation between the three countries and between the three and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), among other issues of common concern.

Taking part in Tuesday's meeting were Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun.

The meeting of leaders of the three East Asian countries is a mechanism to discuss cooperation among themselves and deal with relations with ASEAN, which groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ASEAN is holding its ninth summit here on Oct. 7-8.

During the three-nation meeting, Wen said the three have a good foundation for their cooperation which has great potentials for further growth. He listed, among others, areas of increasing cooperation, including trade, information industry, environmental protection, human resources, and culture. He also mentioned their cooperation in preventing and treating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which opened a new cooperation area -- public health.

Wen said that following the meeting, the three countries signed and issued a joint declaration of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea promoting tripartite cooperation.

He described the declaration as a document of great importance in the history of Northeast Asian cooperation and of the relations between the three countries.

It marks the cooperation between the three has entered a new stage, Wen stressed.

He said China will implement what were agreed upon at this meeting according to the joint declaration of the three countries.

"I hope when we meet again next year, the tripartite cooperation will achieve new development," he said.

Wen made four-point proposal for future cooperation between the three:

• Establishing a "Tripartite Committee" as early as possible to coordinate and plan the tripartite cooperation according to the declaration. The level and composition of the committee can be discussed at the working group level;
• Continuing to study the issue of establishing a China-Japan-South Korea Free Trade Area. The Chinese side supports research institutions of the three countries to start studying the three-nation FTA's possible influence on industry;
• Deepening cooperation between relevant departments of the three countries. China hopes that a cooperation mechanism in the area of exchange and distribution, particularly logistic distribution, will be established as soon as possible, and that the three countries will further discuss the establishment of a cooperation mechanism on quality supervision and inspection and quarantine, gradually expand facilitation measures for promoting trade between them, and support the media organizations of the three countries to increase cooperation; and
• Holding a seminar in China next year on China "Revitalizing the Northeast" and Northeast Asian cooperation. China has begun to implement the strategy of "Revitalizing the Northeast," which will provide a new opportunity for cooperation between the three countries. China welcomes government departments and people from all walks of life of Japan and South Korea to attend the seminar.

(Xinhua News Agency October 7, 2003)