Yoon's Japan visit to be 'turning point' in restoring bilateral ties

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a luncheon with company CEOs at Yeongbingwan guesthouse in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

President to hold summit with Kishida on Thursday

By Nam Hyun-woo

President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a summit with Japanese Prime Minster Fumio Kishida in Tokyo on Thursday, the first day of his two-day visit to Japan, his security adviser said Tuesday, expecting the summit to be a "turning point" in restoring bilateral relations between the two countries.

"President Yoon's visit to Japan will be an important moment for ending the vicious cycle between the two countries and improving the condition for bilateral exchange," South Korea's Director of National Security Kim Sung-han said during a press conference.

"The leaders will discuss various issues related to the normalization of South Korea-Japan relations, including the execution plan of compensating forced labor victims, which was announced earlier," Kim said. "Also, they will discuss measures to lift barriers which are obstructing the two countries' economic exchange and explore ideas to deepen bilateral economic cooperation."

It will be the first visit to Japan by a South Korean president in four years, following Yoon's predecessor Moon Jae-in's visit to Osaka in 2019 to attend the Group of 20 Summit. Also, it will be the first time in 12 years that a South Korean president is visiting Japan for a summit with a Japanese leader.

Director of National Security Kim Sung-han speaks on President Yoon Suk Yeol's visit to Japan during a press conference at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

Yoon's visit to Japan was facilitated as part of the president's belief that the two countries should not be restrained by their past history and take a step forward to enable cooperation between the neighboring countries.

Bilateral ties have been frayed following a 2018 Supreme Court ruling here, ordering Japanese companies to compensate victims who were forced to labor at Japanese factories during World War II. Japan has refused to offer compensation, claiming those issues were addressed by a 1965 treaty between the two countries.

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On March 6, South Korea announced a plan to compensate the victims through a public fund operated by a South Korean foundation, without the direct involvement of responsible Japanese firms. This resulted in the leaders agreeing to hold a summit less than two weeks after the announcement.

According to Kim, Yoon will depart for Tokyo on Thursday morning and have a luncheon with South Korean residents in Japan. The president will then hold a summit with the Japanese prime minister in the afternoon and the leaders are expected to announce the result of their talks before their dinner.

Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun reported that Yoon will have dinner with Kishida at two different restaurants. One of them will be Rengatei, a Western-style restaurant in Ginza, Tokyo, which claims to be the birthplace of "tonkatsu" (pork cutlet)" and "omuraisu" (omelet and rice).

The newspaper reported that the Japanese government selected the restaurant as Yoon is known to be fond of omuraisu. The dinner will be participated by a small number of aides in order to promote friendship between the leaders.

On the following day, Yoon will meet high-profile figures from associations promoting the two countries' friendship, such as the South Korea-Japan Parliamentarians' Union. The event will be participated by Kishida's predecessors, including Yoshihide Suga and Taro Aso.

Yoon will then have a roundtable luncheon with business tycoons of both countries. With Kishida being anticipated to attend this event, the heads of South Korea's top conglomerates are expected to join the event. In the afternoon, Yoon will deliver a speech at Keio University on the future generation. First lady Kim Keon Hee will also join Yoon's trip.

In the wake of the visit, Yoon and Kishida are anticipated to discuss various pending issues between the two countries, including compensation for South Korean victims of wartime forced labor by Japan, lifting Japan's export control on key industrial materials, countering North Korea's missile and nuclear threats, and the trilateral security cooperation involving the United States.

"The issue of Japan's export restrictions is intertwined with [South] Korea's absence from Japan's list of preferred trade partners and Seoul's complaint against the restrictions with the World Trade Organization," a senior official at the presidential office said. "If there is progress in one issue, the others will be addressed naturally."

The official also said an improvement in Seoul-Tokyo relations will strengthen the trilateral security cooperation involving the U.S., improving South Korea's capacity to deter North Korea's nuclear threats. In doing so, the two countries' intelligence-sharing pact, known as General Security of Military Information Agreement, could be back on track, the official added.

If Yoon's upcoming visit serves its role in improving the South Korea-Japan relations, further progress in the trilateral partnership can be expected later this year, as Yoon is set to visit the U.S. in April and anticipated to be invited to the Group of Seven Summit in Hiroshima in May.

"Given the diplomatic timetable, you can expect that the trilateral security cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan will be expanded to a comprehensive cooperation," the official said.