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How US-led alliance aims to mend Japan-South Korea ties and rein in China
- Washington hopes ‘trilateral’ strategy will contain Beijing, while Seoul seeks to deter Pyongyang, observer says
- But controversy over Japanese compensation for WWII victims and South Korean reliance on Chinese trade could limit cooperation
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Trilateral cooperation among the US, Japan and South Korea could bolster Washington’s goal of containing China and revitalise efforts to resolve long-standing obstacles between Tokyo and Seoul, analysts said.
The strategy has been a key focus of recent talks by US, Japanese and South Korean diplomats and top leaders.
On January 13, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi discussed the strengthening of ties among the three countries in a telephone conversation.
The call coincided with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to the US, where he pledged to move quickly to repair strained relations with South Korea.
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Park Won-gon, professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, said the White House hoped that trilateral cooperation could help South Korea and Japan overcome unstable ties, with the US taking the lead in the relationship.
“There are certain limits in restoring Seoul and Tokyo’s relations, considering the difficulties in overcoming the historical experiences between the two countries,” Park said.
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“So it is more advantageous to promote multilateral cooperation between Seoul, Tokyo and Washington to maintain the stability and sustainability of the security commitment against China and North Korea,” he added.
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