Leaders from China, Japan and South Korea will on Monday will hold their first trilateral meeting in more than four years, as Beijing seeks to counteract U.S. efforts to work closely with Tokyo and Seoul — two major American allies in the Asia-Pacific region.

The meeting underscores the balancing act that Tokyo and Seoul are trying to strike as they try to navigate the economic and military competition between Washington and Beijing: Although Japan and South Korea are security allies of the United States and have stepped up joint military drills in the region, they also rely on China as their largest trading partner.