South Korea, Japan aim for rapprochement, while North Korea threatens

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol arrives in Tokyo, Japan, March 16, 2023. AP - Yuya Shino

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

North Korea launched a long-range ballistic missile on Thursday, March 16, while South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol is traveling to Tokyo, Japan. This is the first summit between the two countries in twelve years, and it is necessarily taking place in a tense security context in the region. Since the beginning of the week, South Korea has been conducting large-scale joint military exercises, and Pyongyang has responded with missile launches.

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With our correspondent in Seoul, Nicolas Rocca

The historic summit between South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was supposed to revolve around memory and defense issues. With this launch of a long-range ballistic missile, Thursday, March 16, North Korea guaranteed that it would be at the heart of the discussions, while Yoon Suk-yeol arrived in Japan.

The goal for Tokyo and Seoul is to end years of differences and improve their communication, especially in the military field. In particular, the two allies of the United States have agreed to automatically share information on North Korean missile launches in real time. Chun In-bum, a retired general and former head of South Korea's special forces, explains:

« When an event occurs, having everyone have access to information without human interference is a great asset. Because the North Koreans can have a missile that hits a target in South Korea, in three to five minutes. So even if we can benefit from even 10 or 15 seconds of extra warning time, it gives us better security and improves our chances of survival. »

Faced with the considerable improvement in Pyongyang's military assets over the past five years, and amid rising tensions with China, Washington wants Tokyo and Seoul to put aside their historical differences in favor of effective military collaboration. After proposing a compensation plan for the victims of the Japanese colonization of the peninsula without the participation of Japanese companies, South Korea certainly expects a gesture in return from Tokyo.

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Read on on the same topics:

• South Korea
• Japan
• North Korea
• United States
• Yoon Suk-yeol
• Fumio Kishida