South Korea and Japan could use their coming bilateral summit to project stability to Washington, which was simultaneously imposing high tariffs on its allies while seeking their cooperation to counter China, analysts said.
The summit, scheduled for August 23 in Tokyo, will be the first full bilateral summit between South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. It comes at a time of mounting global uncertainty – from the war in Ukraine and Middle East conflicts to North Korea’s nuclear brinkmanship and the weakening of traditional trade frameworks.
For Lee, who is treading a careful line between Beijing and Washington, the summit offers a chance to consolidate ties with Tokyo before his first meeting with US President Donald Trump.
For Ishiba, it will be an opportunity to demonstrate diplomatic leadership and recover from a bruising election loss in July – when his coalition failed to retain a majority in the upper house, raising doubts within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) over his leadership.
In Friday’s Liberation Day speech marking 80 years since the end of Japanese colonial rule, Lee urged Japan to “face up to the painful history of the past” and ensure that bilateral trust “is not undermined”.
