Reconciliation of expediency by ROK only serves to heighten volatility in the region: China Daily editorial

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to Seoul on Sunday and Monday came less than two months after ROK President Yoon Suk-yeol's visit to Tokyo. It marks the resumption of the "shuttle diplomacy" between the two neighbors after a 12-year suspension caused by their different views on Japan's colonial occupation of Korea and subsequent war crimes.

It is the Yoon government's relinquishing of the Republic of Korea's stance that Japan must apologize for those crimes and compensate for the ROK's losses that has enabled the apparent improvement in bilateral ties.

Yet the widespread public protests against the Yoon government's "revisionism" and reckless deviation from the principled diplomacy the country has adhered to for decades, as well as the strong opposition the Yoon government has subjected itself to for that, expose the "reconciliation" between the ROK and Japan for what it is: a temporary success in the geopolitical schemes of Washington, rather than a true rapport being struck between the two nations.

The different reactions that the move has triggered from different stakeholders — praise from Washington, opposition from the ROK public, hesitation from Japan, and uneasiness from the region — demonstrate the true nature of the breakthrough the Yoon government has made. It is nothing more than a political expediency orchestrated by Washington, which wants to engage the ROK deeper in its geopolitical games in the region targeting China, Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Tokyo's refusal to reflect on the historical issues, which are also concerns of other countries in the region that fell prey to Japan's militarism, should never be taken as a small matter, as it directly reflects how the Japanese public has been constantly misled in viewing its past. And by controlling the public view of the past, the dominating right-wing politicians in the country also control the public perception of the future with the aim of reviving the country's militaristic spirit.

Speaking to the media before departing Seoul, Kishida said that he hoped to further strengthen his personal relationship with Yoon and they would "work together to carve out a new era".

The US' indulgence of Japan pursuing its remilitarization path stems from its need for a faithful follower in the region to spearhead its strategy to contain China. In Washington's eyes, the ROK is also a useful tool in this endeavor.

On Monday, Yoon called for officials to map out specific steps to deepen security and economic cooperation with Japan, saying that Seoul, Tokyo and Washington are engaging in talks to implement their earlier agreement on a faster exchange of information on the missile tests of the DPRK, and hinted at Japan's possible participation in future nuclear deterrence consultations between Washington and Seoul.

By sacrificing the ROK's strategic autonomy in this way, the Yoon government has revealed its lack of foresight, wisdom and principle and thus increased the risks and uncertainties in the region.