The leaders of Japan, China and South Korea have adopted a joint declaration that includes their pledge to continue positive efforts for the political settlement of the Korean Peninsula issue.

The trilateral summit between Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was held in Seoul on Monday.

The declaration says the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and to an international order based on the rule of law and international law.

It also says the leaders agreed that the trilateral summit and the trilateral foreign ministers' meeting should be held on a regular basis without hiatus.

The leaders pledged to identify and implement mutually-beneficial cooperation projects centered on six key areas. They are: people-to-people exchanges; sustainable development, including climate change response; economic cooperation and trade; public health and ageing society; science and technology cooperation, including digital transformation; as well as disaster relief and safety.

The declaration says the three countries will designate 2025-2026 as the Year of Cultural Exchange among the three countries, while also striving to increase the number of trilateral people-to-people exchanges to 40 million by 2030 through tourism and other areas.

The leaders also agreed to maintain discussions for speeding up negotiations for a trilateral free trade agreement, with the goal of realizing a free, fair, comprehensive, high-quality, and mutually beneficial FTA.

They also reaffirmed that maintaining peace, stability and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia serves their countries' common interest and is a common responsibility they share.

The declaration says the leaders reiterated their positions on regional peace and stability, denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the abductions issue, respectively.