SEOUL: The leaders of South Korea, Japan and China will meet next month to discuss closer cooperation in combating the global financial crisis, according to Seoul presidential officials.

President Lee Myung-Bak, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will hold talks in the Japanese city of Fukuoka on December 13, the office said.

It will be the first such summit to be held separately from multilateral international forums. The three countries have met previously on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three summit.

The meeting was scheduled for September but postponed following the sudden resignation of then-Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.

The three countries will discuss expanding foreign currency swap arrangements and the agreement by the ASEAN Plus Three to create an US$80 billion joint fund to combat any regional financial crisis, an aide to Lee told Yonhap news agency in Lima during the president's visit to Peru.

Regional leaders agreed during the Asia-Europe Summit in October to create the joint fund within the first half of next year and establish a regional financial market surveillance organisation.

Earlier this month the Japanese, Chinese and South Korean finance ministers resolved to take the lead in stabilising Asian economies.

"The three countries... should play a pivotal role in maintaining economic and financial stability of the region, which is not only helpful for the Asian region but also contributing to the world economy," they said in a joint statement after talks on the sidelines of a Group of 20 meeting in Washington on the financial crisis.

South Korea is eager to widen currency swap deals with its neighbours after the won came under massive selling pressure, sinking to a 10-year low against the dollar Thursday.

Currently, Japan can extend dollar and yen funds worth up to US$13 billion to South Korea, while China can provide yuan funds worth up to US$4 billion to Seoul.

The three countries are also members of a six-nation forum which is trying to persuade North Korea to scrap its nuclear programme in return for aid and diplomatic benefits.

- AFP/yb