TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister ISHIBA Shigeru is planning to cancel his attendance at the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) summit in the Hague, a source with direct knowledge said on Monday.

Broadcaster Fuji Television said Ishiba was cancelling the trip because a planned meeting between NATO and a group of four Indo-Pacific nations (IP-4) would likely not take place, and because a meeting with US President Donald Trump was also unlikely.

South Korea and Australia, which along with the U.S. and Japan make up the IP-4, have also said their leaders would not attend the NATO summit meeting.

Foreign Minister IWAYA Takeshi will represent Japan, the source said, declining to be identified because the plan is not public. 

Reuters