On May 29 ,2000, Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori visited the Republic of Korea for the first time since taking office. The timing was opportune, in view of extremely important diplomatic events coming up for the two countries--the G8 Kyushu-Okinawa Summit in July and the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Seoul in October--and in regard to policies toward North Korea, with the ROK-North Korea summit scheduled for June on the one hand and the postponement of the next round of talks on normalization of relations between Japan and North Korea on the other.

Prime Minister Mori conferred with ROK President Kim Dae Jung at the Chong Wa Dae(Blue House). President Kim began by expressing his condolences over the death of former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi and saying that he planned to attend the funeral on June 8. The two leaders had an extremely meaningful exchange of views on a wide range of issues, including policies toward North Korea, the Kyushu-Okinawa Summit, the ASEM, a visit by President Kim to Japan, voting rights in local Japanese elections for South Korean residents, a Japan-ROK investment agreement and a free-trade agreement, the bilateral trade imbalance and the situation of aviation between the two countries, and people-to-people exchange. Brief though Prime Minister Mori's visit was, the Japanese Prime Minister and the ROK President were able to establish a good personal relationship of trust.

Speaking at a luncheon in Prime Minister Mori's honor, President Kim referred to the Prime Minister's fighting spirit, spirit of sacrifice, and skill in teamwork,which had been acquired through rugby. Quoting the Prime Minister's likening of life to a rugby ball--"No one knows which way the ball will go, but a chance always comes"--President Kim expressed his sincere agreement with the Prime Minister's view of life:"Life is a succession of challenges".

In the afternoon teachers and students of Paichai Middle School paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Mori. Its sister school is Neagari Middle School, in the Prime Minister's home town of Neagari, Ishikawa Prefecture. The catalyst of the sister-school relationship was a Japan-ROK goodwill middle school basketball game in Seoul in March 1972, when the two schools played against each other, having won their respective national tournaments. On the occasion, Prime Minister Mori, then a young member of the Diet, had accompanied the Neagari team to Seoul as an advisor.