South Korean and Japanese defense chiefs will meet next week for the first time in four years amid soured ties over history rows, the Defense Ministry said Thursday.
Defense Minister Han Min-koo “is scheduled to meet with his Japanese counterpart Gen Nakatani on May 30 in Singapore on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue,” the ministry said in a release, citing the three-day regional security forum slated to start May 29.
If held, it will be the first bilateral talks between the top defense officials in four years, as they have shunned such meetings due to strained relations over history-related issues.
Icy Seoul-Tokyo relations have taken a turn for the worse in recent months after the Abe administration renewed claims to South Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo and attempted to deny its wrongdoings during World War II, such as the forced sexual enslavement of Asian women, mostly Korean, for its soldiers. Korea was under harsh colonial rule by Japan from 1910 to 1945.
“The two sides will discuss issues of mutual interest including their defense policies and how to boost cooperation to better deal with North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats,” the ministry said.
Apart from the bilateral meeting, Han and Nakatani will also hold trilateral talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, with its date yet to be fixed, the ministry added.
The Seoul government has called on Japan as well as the U.S. to closely consult with it in implementing the renewed version of their defense cooperation guidelines that they announced last month. The arrangement, with a gist of allowing Japan to play a greater military role aboard, sparks concerns over Tokyo’s possible amendment of its pacifist Constitution and a regional arms race.
In July last year, the Japanese cabinet decided to reinterpret its war-renouncing pacifist constitution to pursue the right of collective self-defense, which would allow it to fight alongside its allies even if Japan itself is not under attack.
Despite the strained relations, Seoul has been working with Japan on security matters under the trilateral framework. In December, the two Asian countries and the U.S. signed an arrangement to share military intelligence on North Korea’s nuclear and missiles programs.
Meanwhile, Han plans to visit Vietnam on a three-day schedule starting Wednesday, according to his office.
“While in Vietnam, Han plans to meet with his Vietnamese counterpart to sign a memorandum of understanding on the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement in a move to strengthen security ties,” the ministry said.
The agreement provides a framework for logistics cooperation between armed forces, with Seoul clinching the deal with major global powers, including the U.S. and Australia. (Yonhap)
