ed Another rebuke for Abe

Seven years ago, the U.S. Congress issued a yellow card for Japan’s continued denial of the fact that its military forced foreign women into sexual slavery during World War II, by adopting a resolution. On Friday, Capitol Hill showed a red card to the unrepentant government in Tokyo, by passing legislation that calls for the Obama administration to press Japan to actively address this issue.

This means that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who didn’t utter a word on this and other historical conflicts between Korea and Japan after a meeting with his Korean counterpart earlier this month, will feel obliged to break his silence from now on.

The latest move seems to reflect a welcome, if belated, change in the awareness of U.S. politicians that America’s one-sided defense of its biggest ally in Asia could adversely affect their country’s interests in the region.

Yet it would be a mistake for Seoul to overstretch the meaning of the legislation, not just because it has no binding power, but also because many U.S. lawmakers might have approved the spending bill for 2014 without knowing that it includes a provision on the Asian diplomatic issue, inserted by Rep. Michael Honda, a third-generation Japanese-American.

Tokyo has made no official response to what could be an embarrassing development for it, but is unlikely to change its position much.

The Japanese government may go all out to effectively neutralize the new law’s existence or conduct even more brisk diplomacy to sway the U.S. and international opinions closer to its side, as Japan and China have done in competitive maneuvers in London, Washington and other major capital cities of the world. Korea also has to brace itself for a bilateral or trilateral diplomatic war on the global stage, which has just begun in earnest.

It is ironic, however, for the three Northeast Asian countries to compete to win the hearts of the Western countries ― especially for Japan to justify its wrongdoings committed during the war that Tokyo started to allegedly protect Asia from the advance of the same Western nations. In a more desirable scenario, Tokyo would have admitted its misdeeds, apologized for them and made reparations if needed, and be reborn as a global leader, as Germany did. For how long will Japan continue saying that Asia is different from Europe?

Japan’s conservative leaders may think that the sexual slavery issue will be over once a few dozen living former “comfort women” pass away before long. Yet it is Japan, not the elderly ladies, who will miss the irrecoverable opportunity for historical reconciliation and start anew.

This is especially because Japan is trying hard to become the sixth permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, to which President Park Geun-hye has expressed clear opposition to, albeit in diplomatic politeness.

There is a way for Japan to become a genuine global leader, which the whole world and most Japanese people, except for Prime Minister Abe and other conservative nationalist leaders, understand and pursue. The latter must face reality, or the rest of the world should make them do so.