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Park Chan-kyong

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ruled out expanding military ties with Japan any time soon, insisting that historical grievances must be resolved first.
The two countries have come under growing pressure to strengthen defence ties as North Korea, China and Russia draw closer together. But analysts say such a move remains politically risky for Lee’s government given deep-seated public resentment in South Korea towards Japan.
To explain why his country could not yet embrace military cooperation with Japan, Lee likened it to a man being punched and hospitalised before being asked by his attacker to shake hands and move on.
“Can I simply get along with them because it is necessary?” Lee asked at a press conference on Monday marking his first year in office.
To become real friends, that attacker would need to say, ‘I’m genuinely sorry’
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung
“In order to become real friends, that attacker would need to say, ‘I’m genuinely sorry … it must have hurt you … I promise I will never do it again,’” he said.
Lee was responding to questions about a bilateral military logistics agreement known as an Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) that Tokyo wants to sign with Seoul to deepen defence cooperation between the two US allies.
He acknowledged a “practical need” for such a pact but stressed that sincere apologies from Japan would be needed first.

“I would be reproached by the people if I spoke openly about the need for such cooperation,” Lee said. “I clearly told the Japanese side that they must understand this sentiment.”
Japan colonised the Korean peninsula from 1910 to 1945, leaving behind wounds that have never fully healed. Lingering grievances over historical dignity, territorial sovereignty and recognition for victims of forced labour and sexual slavery continue to strain relations.
“This is not about money or compensation,” Lee added. “It is entirely an emotional issue.”
A bitter history
The president’s remarks followed a meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last month between South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi, where Tokyo’s ACSA proposal was reportedly on the agenda.
A defence ministry spokesman later categorically denied that Seoul was considering such a pact, however.
Attempts to introduce a South Korea-Japan ACSA have sparked a fierce public backlash in the past.
In 2012, a former conservative government secretly sought to sign an ACSA with Japan alongside a military intelligence-sharing agreement known as the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), reportedly at Washington’s behest, but the deal was abruptly cancelled hours before the signing ceremony after an outcry.

The two countries eventually signed the GSOMIA in 2016. Seoul later threatened to suspend it in 2019 during a bilateral trade dispute, but ultimately retained it under US pressure.
“Because of this bitter experience, Seoul finds it difficult to bring the issue back to the table in the near future,” said Kim Yeol-soo, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for Military Affairs.
“However, if the atmosphere continues to improve thanks to shuttle diplomacy, things could change for the better.”
Lee and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi have been actively pursuing shuttle diplomacy since both took office, meeting most recently in the southeastern Korean city of Andong.


Doo Jin-ho, director of the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy’s Eurasia Research Centre, said Takaichi’s government “believes that now is the most appropriate time for the two countries to sign the bilateral agreement”.
Japan, as South Korea’s nearest neighbour, would be the most logical source of military supplies and equipment should North Korea launch an attack, Doo said.
“However, historical grievances remain an obstacle and many Koreans doubt Japan’s motives,” he said. “They suspect that Japanese troops could return to the Korean peninsula under the guise of such an agreement.”
Lee hinted at that suspicion in his remarks on Monday. “Japan often responds as if to say, ‘How long ago was it that I hit you? I’ve already apologised three times, do I have to keep doing it?’,” he said. “If that is the attitude, how can there be a genuine meeting of hearts?”

Jeong Han-beom, an international-relations professor at Korea National Defence University, said Seoul understood that “the need for stronger security cooperation with Japan is increasing”.
“But many Koreans remain sceptical about Japan’s commitment to such cooperation in light of its past wrongdoings,” he said. “If someone apologises for their wrongs and then forgets about them, or even denies the apology the next day, how can you trust them?”
Lee is acutely aware of this trust deficit, saying at Monday’s press conference that he told Takaichi as much in Andong.
“There are still unresolved historical issues between us,” Lee said he told Takaichi.
“At some point, these issues must be settled … I believe the day will come when Japan genuinely says, ‘I’m sorry for what I did.’”


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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung hold talks in Andong, South Korea, on Tuesday. Photo: Kyodo

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Japan’s Sanae Takaichi poses for photographs after receiving a gift of glasses from South Korea’s Lee Jae Myung in his hometown of Andong on Tuesday. Photo: South Korean Presidential Office/Yonhap/Reuters

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President Lee Jae Myung says Tokyo must offer a genuine apology before a military logistics pact can move forward


President Lee Jae Myung says Tokyo must offer a genuine apology before a military logistics pact can move forward.


South Korea tells Japan to apologise before military cooperation

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}President Lee Jae Myung says Tokyo must offer a genuine apology before a military logistics pact can move forward

President Lee Jae Myung says Tokyo must offer a genuine apology before a military logistics pact can move forward