Zhongguancun beat Silicon Valley to be ranked the top technology hub in the world.

Joining Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and ROK President Moon Jae-in for a trilateral meeting in Tokyo in May, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said the three countries, which are three large global economies and key mutual partners in trade and economic cooperation, shoulder great responsibilities in boosting regional development, guiding regional economic integration and safeguarding regional peace and stability.

Li said strengthening trilateral cooperation not only meets the needs of the three countries, but also the expectations of the region and the international community.

The three countries have pledged to accelerate negotiations for a trilateral free trade agreement and to achieve the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership at an early date.

The partnership is a proposed free trade agreement between the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand - the six Asia-Pacific states with which ASEAN has free trade agreements.

Li also suggested that China, Japan and the ROK join hands to promote the building of an East Asian Economic Community, and stand together even more steadfastly to safeguard the rules-based multilateral free trade system.

He said the three countries can cooperate within a "China-Japan-ROK plus X" framework, with the "X" signifying business approaches beyond the three.

The ROK has said it will seek to increase cooperation with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, according to Yonhap News Agency.

During the bank's annual meeting in Mumbai, India, in June, ROK Deputy Finance Minister Ko Hyungkwon met with the bank's top executives, including its President Jin Liqun, to discuss mutual cooperation.

Seoul has called for greater participation by private investors in the bank's massive infrastructure development program.

The ROK joined the AIIB, the China-led multinational lender set up in 2015 to fund infrastructure projects in Asia, as one of its founding members.

As for European Unionlike integration in East Asia, Lee said it will take time. The environment China, Japan and the ROK are facing is different to that in Europe.

"First of all, from the geopolitical perspective, China is a continental power, Japan is a sea power, and the ROK is a peninsular nation," Lee said. "EU nations are on one continent."

Geographic closeness and cultural similarities are the strong points of the three East Asian countries, Lee said.

"But we should take other factors, such as different geopolitical positions, or strategic perspectives and historical issues, into consideration," he said.

Lee said each of the three countries has its own strengths based on their competitive advantages. By combining their strengths, they can bring significant advantages to their populations.