South Korea’s Ambassador to the U.S. Cho Hyun-dong says the upcoming summit among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan became possible thanks to improved Seoul-Tokyo ties.

Cho made the assessment in Washington during a meeting with South Korean correspondents on Monday, remarking that the improved relations enabled trilateral cooperation to evolve to a new level.

The ambassador specifically noted that the summit is the first of the three leaders that is not occurring on the margins of a multilateral conference, as well as the the first summit to be held at Camp David since U.S. President Joe Biden took office.

Cho said the latter fact is demonstrative of the special view that Biden holds of his relationship with South Korea’s president, Seoul-Washington relations and cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan.

There is also speculation that the upcoming summit, slated for August 18, may be the first of a regular series of three-way meetings.