[EAI Commentary No. 4] Japan-Korea Relations in the Global Era

President Lee Myung-bak and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama held their first summit meeting on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Summit on September 23rd, followed by a bilateral summit in Seoul on October 9th. Just the next day, October 10th, the Korea-China-Japan trilateral summit took place in Beijing. It is noteworthy that the leaders of Korea and Japan met three times within just three weeks of the Hatoyama cabinet's inauguration. It is also significant that discussions are occurring almost simultaneously on three levels: the global agenda, Korea-China-Japan cooperation, and bilateral Korea-Japan relations. This demonstrates how international politics has become increasingly complex and multifaceted, with bilateral relations becoming interconnected with regional and global multilateral relations. The increasing frequency of summit meetings is a current trend in international politics, driven by leaders directly engaging in this multi-layered international landscape.

So, how many times do the leaders of Korea and Japan meet in a year? Firstly, the Korea-Japan shuttle summit is scheduled twice annually, and the Korea-China-Japan summit has also been regularized since last year. They meet once a year at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), ASEAN Plus Three (APT), and East Asian Summit (EAS) meetings, which have been held since the 1990s. At the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), they meet every two years. In addition to meetings related to international organizations such as the UN General Assembly and the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December, and with the G20 Summit now regularized since this year, the leaders of Korea and Japan must meet face-to-face at least seven times a year. This is a result of not only the globalization of international politics but also the enhanced status of Korea on the international stage.

The Korea-Japan summit held in Seoul on October 9th reflects Prime Minister Hatoyama's emphasis on promoting friendly relations between the two countries and his foreign policy focus on Asia. Prime Minister Hatoyama's choice of Seoul as his first overseas destination for a bilateral summit symbolically signifies that Korea-Japan relations are the starting point of Japanese diplomacy. Immediately after taking office as leader of the Democratic Party, Prime Minister Hatoyama also visited Seoul for his first overseas trip, meeting with President Lee Myung-bak and reaffirming the friendship and goodwill between Korea and Japan. Historically, the importance of diplomacy with Korea in Japanese foreign policy has not been as significant as the importance of diplomacy with Japan in Korean foreign policy. There are two factors contributing to the recent increase in the importance of diplomacy with Korea by the Japanese government. First, Japan's Northeast Asian balancing strategy seeks to achieve equilibrium through cooperation with Korea, rather than confronting an increasingly powerful China alone. Second, as Japan pursues global diplomacy contributing to worldwide issues such as the environment, development, and human security, Korea, which shares the same values of liberal democracy and market economy and has a similar level of economic development, has begun to be seen as an attractive partner for cooperation. These two factors also apply to Korea. Korea and Japan have an opportunity to foster friendly and neighborly relations with a longer-term perspective and broader vision than ever before.

Consequently, the agenda for Korea-Japan summit diplomacy is expanding beyond bilateral issues such as territorial and historical disputes, and adjustments in security and economic relations, to encompass regional issues in East Asia, including the North Korean nuclear issue and the establishment of an East Asian economic community, and further to seeking cooperation between Korea and Japan on a global scale. This Korea-Japan summit, in line with this trend of the times, addressed Korea-Japan bilateral relations, key regional issues in East Asia, and the global agenda as core topics. The two leaders are assessed to have largely reached an agreement and consensus on these three levels of issues.

Among the specific agenda items at this summit, attention was drawn to Prime Minister Hatoyama's remarks regarding historical issues and the issue of Emperor Akihito's visit to Korea. Prime Minister Hatoyama stated his basic stance on diplomacy toward Korea, which is to build future-oriented relations based on confronting historical issues, and sought understanding. This can be seen as consistent with his previous statement that he would "carry in his heart" the Murayama Statement, which expressed deep remorse and apologies for the past colonial rule. However, he adopted a very cautious stance on the issue of local suffrage for Korean residents in Japan and the proposed visit of Emperor Akihito to Korea, which is being discussed in the context of the 100th anniversary of the forced annexation. While he clearly expressed his position of confronting and reflecting on past historical issues in principle, he frankly admitted that in practice, there are significant obstacles to concrete action due to the sentiments of the Japanese public and complex dynamics.

The issue of the Emperor's visit to Korea is particularly a highly sensitive and contentious issue within Japan due to the Japanese peculiarity of prohibiting the "political use" of the Emperor. Japanese people, remembering that Emperor Akihito's visit to China in 1992 was used as an exit strategy for China, which was diplomatically isolated after the Tiananmen Square incident, hold the view that the Emperor's visit should not be used for political purposes. On the Korean side, despite the official expression of apology and remorse for the colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, the Japanese government still maintains an ambiguous stance on the legality of the forced annexation. Therefore, consideration must be given to whether it is appropriate to invite the Emperor in the year of the 100th anniversary of the forced annexation. Considering these realities on both sides, the attempt to link the Emperor's visit to Korea with the resolution of historical issues and as a decisive opportunity for reconciliation between the Korean and Japanese peoples, while meaningful, carries the risk of backlash if the understanding and support of both societies are not secured.

Regarding the North Korean nuclear issue, a key agenda item in Northeast Asia, a consensus was reached on the "grand bargain" proposed by President Lee Myung-bak. Prime Minister Hatoyama praised the proposal as a "precise and correct plan" and expressed strong support. The North Korean nuclear issue is an area requiring close policy coordination, as both Korea and Japan could be the primary victims from a geopolitical perspective. However, North Korea is only opening channels of dialogue with China and the United States, while deliberately avoiding direct dialogue with Korea and Japan. For the South Korean government, securing leadership in North Korean policy within the international community and expanding its influence through close cooperation with Japan is a crucial task. By stating that the grand bargain includes the abduction issue, which Japan prioritizes, the South Korean government is showing more consideration to Japan than the previous administration. However, it remains questionable whether issues like the abduction problem will persist as the United States, Korea, China, Japan, and potentially Russia, begin to coordinate the grand bargain proposed by Korea in earnest.

While the direction and vision of the "East Asian Community" advocated by Prime Minister Hatoyama are desirable, there are considerable vague and ambiguous aspects regarding its specific content and implementation methods. The East Asian Community strategy pursued under the Liberal Democratic Party government can be seen as a last resort for Japan to counter and check China's rise as a superpower. It remains to be seen whether Japan's previous stance of promoting a broad East Asian regionalism, including Australia, New Zealand, and India, while emphasizing values such as liberal democracy and market economy, will continue under the Hatoyama administration, or if new ideas and strategies will emerge. For Prime Minister Hatoyama's East Asian Community initiative to succeed, he must first find an answer to the question of why Japan, which has long established regional networks in functional areas such as trade, investment, development aid, and the environment, has not been able to solidify its leadership in the East Asian region. Prime Minister Hatoyama should respond to Korea's "pragmatic diplomacy" and China's "harmonious diplomacy" by presenting a vision, philosophy, and principles of "fraternal diplomacy" that enable Korea, China, and Japan to build a regional community based on mutual trust.

The range of global issues that the leaders of Korea and Japan will address has also diversified. From cooperation in economic and financial fields to overcome the global financial crisis, to climate change, development, environment, and human rights, Korea and Japan share common interests in many areas, and the need for bilateral coordination and cooperation is expanding. This summit particularly involved in-depth discussions on ways for the two countries to cooperate to ensure that the G20 Summit to be held in Korea next year and the APEC Summit to be held in Japan yield meaningful results. Korea and Japan are two leading developed nations in Asia, sharing not only similar stages of economic development but also norms and cultures that underpin similar political and economic systems. It is a natural outcome that both countries are pursuing global diplomacy with a sense of responsibility to contribute to the pressing challenges of the global community in line with their international standing. Korea and Japan should devise a division of labor and cooperation system based on areas where collaboration is possible, enabling them to make more effective international contributions through mutual cooperation.

2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the forced annexation of Korea by Japan, a significant year for Korea-Japan relations, and also the year when the historic G20 Summit will be held in Korea. Concurrently, the Korea-China-Japan summit will also take place in Korea. With the advent of the meaningful year 2010, Korea and Japan must wisely overcome the historical issues that have led to confrontation and antagonism in their bilateral relations and strive together from a future-oriented perspective to contribute to peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and in East Asia, as well as to the restructuring of the global order.■

Lee Sook-jong (EAI President, Sungkyunkwan University)

Lee Won-deok (Kookmin University)

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