Seventeen experts, intellectuals and former officials from Japan, the United States, China and the Republic of Korea gathered in Tokyo on January 21, 2020, to establish the Asia Peace Conference for the purpose of creating security and sustainable peace in Northeast Asia.

At the conference, participants shared their apprehension over the fact that structural confrontations and tensions prevail, that many hotspots exist in a region where bilateral relations remain unstable, and that neither a scheme for confidence-building nor a framework for multilateral consultations on security matters exist. In such circumstances, we agreed to make the Asia Peace Conference serve as a venue for consultations on confidence-building, and to launch joint efforts towards the improvement of crisis management mechanisms, and frameworks for conflict resolution and sustainable peace in the region, thereby affirming the following items.

1. As the risk of accidental conflict has been increasing, further communication between each country is needed more than ever. In order to prevent conflict and mitigate the risk of accidental clashes in Northeast Asia, the strengthening of binding bilateral frameworks is needed. In the Asia Peace Conference, we will hold a periodical review of incidents. Through these efforts on the platform, we will pursue the eventual establishment of a multilateral framework that can include the whole region.

2. Regarding the future for building sustainable peace in Northeast Asia, non-belligerency, anti-hegemonism and the rule of law should be pursued as starting principles for peace.

3. What was discussed at this conference shall be subject to further deliberations on a bilateral basis among participants from Japan, the United States, China and South Korea, and their results shall be reported to the next Asia Peace Conference, which will be held in Tokyo in January 2021.