Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived South Korea on Monday to launch a one-day visit and will discuss bilateral ties and the nuclear issues on the Korean Peninsula during a summit with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun in the afternoon.

At the summit between Roh and Abe, the two sides will discuss issues including the South Korean-Japanese relations, the nuclear issues on the Korean Peninsula and cooperation in regional and international arenas, according to the Presidential Office.

"The upcoming Korea-Japan summit is expected to facilitate the establishment of mutual trust between the two leaders as well as the improvement of bilateral relations," said a news release by the Presidential Office earlier.

Abe will also meet with South Korean Prime Minister Han Myeong-suk during his visit.

It would be the first summit between South Korean and Japanese leaders since last November when Roh met with former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at the sideline of the APEC summit in South Korea's southern port city of Busan.

The Seoul-Tokyo ties have been strained during the past several years due to Koizumi's repeated visits to the Yasukuni Shrine as well as disputes over history and territory issues.

Source: Xinhua