Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji has arrived in Seoul earlier Saturday to meet with his South Korean counterpart and discuss bilateral relations and issues related to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), according to Seoul's foreign ministry.

In his first visit to Seoul since taking office last September, Maehara is scheduled to sit down with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, and meet with Seoul's Unification Minister Hyun In-taek. He is also expected to pay a courtesy call to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.

Speaking at a security forum held in Seoul, Maehara touched upon his country's position on issues related to the DPRK, noting that Pyongyang should take specific actions to show its seriousness, and inter-Korean dialogue should be achieved first before international nuclear disarmament negotiations are to be resumed.

Close cooperation among Seoul, Washington and Tokyo will be steadily boosted in the future, he added.

The top Japanese diplomat had originally planned to arrive in Seoul on Friday for a two-day visit to South Korea, but postponed it and cut it to one day due to a cabinet reshuffle in his country

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