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Letters | The US prefers Koreans to forget Japanese war crimes
- Readers write in about US-Japan-South Korea relations, and the downsides of democracy
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A trilateral summit between the leaders of the US, Japan and South Korea is said to be taking place in August. If it happens, it will be the first stand-alone summit between the leaders of these countries, since their previous meetings were held on the sidelines of international conferences.
Who would benefit most from such a summit? The United States, probably, as it seeks to rally the region. For Japan, this might be a good opportunity to quickly seal the war crimes issue. The interests of South Korea, unfortunately, do not seem to be a priority.
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Yet Seoul apparently prefers not to ask anything of its “partners” that might be uncomfortable, as this would not align with the political course of Washington. In particular, President Yoon Suk-yeol, to the indignation of many in South Korea, recently suggested that Japan no longer needs to apologise to his country.
As Yoon scores political points with the US, Japan may be waiting to see if the suffering of hundreds of thousands of victims from South Korea, China and other countries will simply be forgotten. For Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, his position in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the support of the conservatives who dominate his party are far more important than any step towards reconciliation between Tokyo and Seoul.
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Japanese conservatives typically regard Korean complaints and accusations as unfounded. Perhaps owing to their fundamental misunderstanding of historical reality, they seem to believe that Japan’s colonial rule has left Koreans better off.
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