President Moon Jae-in has stressed unity and wisdom as the country seeks to reduce its excessive dependence on Japan. 

Moon made the emphasis in a meeting with the leaders of the five major political parties at the top office on Thursday, saying how to respond to Japan’s trade restrictions is the most urgent and important matter for the nation. 

Beginning the meeting, Moon hoped discussions will be made on how to swiftly resolve conflicts with Japan and recover and develop the cooperative relationship between Seoul and Tokyo. 

The president also emphasized a swift passage of the supplementary budget bill to address the grave economic situations and urged the bipartisan cooperation. He also urged the parliament to have in-depth discussions on how to utilize the extra budget to cope with Japan’s export curbs. 

Welcoming the first such meeting in 16 months, Moon hoped the ruling and opposition parties would be unified in their response, saying their cooperation would increase leverage for the South Korean government and companies in negotiations with Japan over trade restrictions.