The Ministry of Health and Welfare held the ’18th Korea-China-Japan Health Ministers’ Meeting’ at the Conrad Seoul Hotel from December 13 to 14. This meeting is significant as it identifies common health issues among the three East Asian countries and strengthens comprehensive cooperation.
The meeting was chaired by South Korea’s Minister of Health and Welfare, Jeong Eun-kyeong, with Japan’s Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Ueno Kenichiro, and China’s Director-General of International Cooperation, Feng Yong, attending as chief representatives. Additionally, WHO Western Pacific Regional Office Executive Director Saia Ma’u Piukala and Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat Secretary-General Lee Hee-seop attended as observers.
Minister Jeong expressed gratitude for the continuity and trust built over the past 18 years of health cooperation among the three countries. She emphasized the importance of cooperation in ensuring healthy lives amid common challenges such as AI-driven healthcare changes, aging populations, and increasing chronic diseases. She also expressed hope for further development of cooperation through discussions on future-oriented health agendas like AI, digital health, healthy aging, and mental health.
Concluding the meeting, the chief representatives adopted the ‘Joint Statement of the 18th Korea-China-Japan Health Ministers’ Meeting’ and agreed to continuously strengthen cooperation in the health sector. Minister Jeong emphasized that the meeting served as an opportunity to share practical policy experiences and solidify the foundation for future cooperation on common challenges like AI-driven healthcare, aging, and mental health.