The leaders of China, South Korea, and Japan met in Seoul to attend the ninth trilateral summit meeting after a hiatus of four and half years. The summit meeting was scheduled at an important juncture when the shadow of a heightened China and the United States (US) contest is looming over the East Asian region. Simultaneously, the Indo-Pacific region is experiencing significant upheaval, characterised by escalating security challenges and increasing geopolitical fragmentation. Amidst the institutionalisation of the US, Japan, and South Korea summit in 2023, the resumption of the trilateral summit between China, ... (full story)