The historic warming of ties between South Korea and Japan took a new turn when the leaders of the two countries stood together and told a US audience they were looking at ways to strengthen their economic bonds.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told a group of entrepreneurs at Stanford University on Friday they were looking at methods to benefit startups in both countries, with Yoon saying if they join forces the two should be able to create solutions that address global issues.
“Imagine startups from two neighboring countries, Japan and South Korea, getting together for engaging in friendly competition with each other and creating new partnerships,” Kishida told the entrepreneurs, ahead of a panel discussion with Yoon.
Yoon said that “in the past, when governments supported a company, the nationality of the founders really mattered.” He added that he wants to support startups at home with the understanding that it would open opportunities for everyone around the world.
Yoon and Kishida met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco a day earlier, for their seventh formal meeting this year. The two have resumed shuttle diplomacy frozen by political rancor and conducted joint military drills with the US to bolster their missile defenses and hunt for submarines.
At the main panel Friday, moderated by former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, both leaders stressed the need to cooperate on climate change solutions and quantum computing.
Yoon proposed “immediate” trilateral talks with Japan and the US on cutting-edge technology. He added it was hard to share such technology, which has national security implications, with nations that hold different values.
Less Bickering
US President Joe Biden was dealt a stronger hand in Asia when Yoon became South Korea’s president more than a year ago, backing hawkish security policies that brought Seoul closer to Tokyo while looking to diminish bickering between the neighbors.
Ties between the two allies of the US who host the bulk of America’s military forces in the region had hit new lows in the years prior to Yoon taking office due to lingering disputes resulting from Japan’s 1910-1945 colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula.
This hurt their ability to work together to counter security threats posed by the likes of North Korea and damaged trade between the Asia powerhouses who are vital to global supply chains of key materials, such as semiconductors.
Biden capitalized on those changes at a landmark summit with Yoon and Kishida in August at the Camp David presidential retreat. The initial payout included practical steps to counter threats by North Korea, measures to “de-risk” global supply chains from exposure to China and moves to bind the trilateral relationship so tightly that it would be hard to unravel.
All three leaders are looking for political wins to boost their political fortunes at home. Yoon’s conservative party is trying to retake control of parliament in an April election; Kishida is seeking to reverse a slide in his popularity, which is now hitting some of its lowest levels since he took office, while Biden is facing heat from Republican presidential hopefuls campaigning to oust him from the White House.
