Japanese destroyer flies controversial flag as it arrives in South Korea for joint drill

JS Hamagiri, an Asagiri-class destroyer of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force, sailed into Busan Port with the Rising Sun flag hoisted

Many Koreans associate the flag with war crimes committed during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule – and a sign Tokyo won’t earnestly address its past

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The Rising Sun flag has been one of many sensitive diplomatic issues between Japan and South Korea. Photo: AP

Published: 5:01pm, 29 May 2023Updated: 12:37pm, 30 May 2023

A Japanese warship arrived in South Korea on Monday for a multinational naval drill later this week, bearing a flag that, for many Koreans, symbolises Japan’s past military expansionism and colonisation.

JS Hamagiri, an Asagiri-class destroyer of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force, sailed into Busan Port with the Rising Sun flag hoisted, ahead of the Eastern Endeavour 23 exercise, which is aimed at reinforcing strategic capabilities to prevent and deter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

Japan joins the United States, Australia, Canada, Singapore and South Korea for the combined training exercise, which is scheduled for Wednesday in international waters near Jeju Island, a day after the opening of a four-day high-level forum of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI).

Many Koreans associate the flag with a long list of war crimes committed by Japan during its 1910-45 colonial rule – and see it as a sign that Tokyo will never properly and earnestly address its past.

The flag has been one of many sensitive diplomatic issues between the two countries. When South Korea’s navy under the previous Moon Jae-in administration requested the Japanese government not to fly the flags during the Jeju International Fleet Review in 2018, it withdrew from the event.