Japan FM in South Korea for talks before Trump takes office

by Hieun SHIN

Japan's foreign minister held talks in South Korea with top officials Monday as the Asian neighbors seek to strengthen ties before the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump.

Takeshi Iwaya met counterpart Cho Tae-yul for discussions in the capital Seoul, the South Korean foreign ministry said, with the two later holding a news conference.

It is the first such meeting by Tokyo's top diplomat in Asia's fourth-biggest economy for more than six years.

Cho said the ministers had "expressed strong concerns over North Korea's nuclear and missile development", in particular Pyongyang's growing military ties with Moscow, including troop deployments.

The talks also focused on trilateral cooperation with mutual ally the United States -- before Trump, who has previously questioned the US's Asian security alliances, takes office on January 20.

The three nations have bolstered security cooperation in recent years, including sharing information on North Korean missile launches.

The latest such test was last week when Pyongyang said it had fired a new hypersonic missile, the same day US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was visiting Seoul.

Cho said he and Iwaya had agreed on "the necessity of continued close coordination among Korea, Japan, and the United States to counter the North Korean nuclear threat".

Tokyo and Seoul's bilitaral ties would also continue to be developed "under any circumstances", with diplomacy to "remain consistent and unwavered", he added.

Iwaya is scheduled to meet acting president Choi Sang-mok on Tuesday, the Japanese government said.

- Political crisis -

The Seoul-Tokyo meeting comes as South Korean officials try to reassure allies of the country's stability.

A political crisis has roiled the vibrant East Asian democracy for weeks following suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law bid and impeachment.

Yoon is currently facing a Constitutional Court case which will determine whether his impeachement is upheld, plus a separate probe on insurrection charges, with investigators seeking to detain him after he refused summons for questioning.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said last month Tokyo was monitoring the situation in South Korea with "exceptional and serious concerns".

If Yoon is removed from office, South Korea has to hold presidential elections within 60 days.

Both the US and Tokyo have adopted "a measured approach... regarding what is ultimately the domestic legal process of an important ally," said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

"Nonetheless, both the US secretary of state and Japanese foreign minister have visited Seoul to support South Korean foreign policy in a time of need, promoting continuity of the trilateral cooperation that deters adventurism by North Korea, China, and Russia," he added.

US-Japanese relations have also recently been strained by President Joe Biden's decision to block Nippon Steel's takeover of US Steel.

Citing national security concerns, Biden blocked the $14.9 billion sale this month and Ishiba reportedly told the US president that "strong" concerns have been raised over the decision.

Iwaya will head to the Philippines on Tuesday as Tokyo seeks to strengthen its strategic partnership with the Southeast Asian nation, to counter China's growing military might and influence in the region.

Japan has been building the newest and largest ships of the Philippine Coast Guard, a key element of Manila's efforts to assert its sovereignty in the South China Sea which Beijing claims almost in its entirety.

© Agence France-Presse