South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba were scheduled to hold their first summit on Thursday in Laos, Yoon's office said, as the neighbours seek to deepen security and economic ties.

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba are set to hold their first summit on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos on Thursday,

Southeast Asian leaders met in Laos on Wednesday for a summit expected to seek ways address the worsening civil war in Myanmar, with Thailand calling for heightened engagement ahead of a planned election by the country's embattled military rulers.

The ASEAN leaders on Wednesday repeated their longstanding calls for restraint and respect for international law, according to a draft summit chairman's statement.

Known as the "Five Point Consensus", the ASEAN-led peace effort for Myanmar has made scant progress since its unveiling in April 2021, just months after the country's military staged a coup and unseated the elected government.