Clarify the often-misunderstood Japan-South Korea issue in 4 minutes
Hello, this is Kansuyama.
Last week, the Korean government decided to terminate GSOMIA, and it sent shockwaves.
“There will be no impact on Japan.”
Such comments are seen, but what is actually going on?
Rather, in the first place why did Korea
go so far as to terminate GSOMIA?
“Anyway, the trust between Japan and Korea is broken, but
why has the situation become so tangled, what is the essential part that isn’t visible?”
Many people may think so.
Also, many people seem to have some misunderstandings.
For example about the July announcement on “export controls to Korea.”
There are those who think
“exports of three items including hydrogen fluoride for semiconductor materials
to Korea were banned,”and that’s their impression.
However, it is not that they are banned.
Only the export approvals were tightened.
From some reports, it may give the impression that exports were prohibited,
which might be understandable...
In any case, regarding Japan-Korea relations
“the overall picture is hard to grasp,”
for those who feel this way the aim is to make the big picture clearer,
so, this time I would like to summarize the Japan-Korea relationship.
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
What kind of country is Korea?
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
First, about Korea as a country.
Recently there are LCCs, and traveling domestically feels like
you can go easily.
In particular, it seems popular among teenage and twenty-something girls,
and the ratio of women among passengers on LCCs tends to be high.
When you actually go there, you feel that there are many similarities to Japan.
For example, like Japan,
there are convenience stores everywhere.
You might think “that’s obvious,” but when you go to countries in Europe such as
France, Italy, or Spain, there are hardly any 24-hour convenience stores like Japan.
There are no vending machines either.
Also, I’ve heard that in Seoul, depending on the hotel,
toilets may have washlets installed,
which is very pleasing for Japanese people.
By the way, washlets are also
not commonly seen in Europe.
Because the water is hard and the nozzles get clogged,
it is technically difficult to provide them there.
Also, in detail, when you walk on the sidewalk,
you may sense, “Oh, this paving reminds me of Japan.”
There are times of a sense of déjà vu.
In that sense, Korea is close to Japan in many ways,
but to understand Korea, it is essential to recognize
the existence of the conservatives and the progressives.
In simple terms,
“Conservatives” value democracy and
believe cooperation with Japan and the United States is also needed, is their stance.
On the other hand,
the “progressives” emphasize ethnic ties.
They prioritize relations with North Korea.
There are those who focus on the relationship with Japan and the United States, the “Conservatives,” and
those who focus on relations with North Korea, the “Progressives.”
These two groups exist, but the rift between them is extremely deep.
In Japan as well, there are various viewpoints,
and sometimes they clash,
but the nature of the clashes inside Japan is on a different dimension.
And, the support base of Moon Jae-in’s administration is the “Progressives.”
In other words, the side that prioritizes relations with North Korea.
However, that does not necessarily mean Moon Jae-in’s administration is pushing anti-Japan stance
strongly..
Here are the words of Ken Kimura, Professor at Kobe University Graduate School of International Cooperation.
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
The difference between conservatives and progressives has become irrelevant.
Currently, former President Park Geun-hye is conservative,
but she was hard on Japan over the comfort women issue.
When Moon Jae-in took office,
he did not show much hostility toward Japan at first.
(Quoted from Nikkei Business
https://business.nikkei.com/atcl/gen/19/00023/031100006/)
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
That said, the fact that Moon Jae-in’s government is
supported by the “Progressives” cannot be ignored.
And, with this background,
the sequence of events this time occurred,
but first, as mentioned at the outset, about the “export controls to Korea.”
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
Why did Japan decide on
“export controls to Korea”?
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
The reason is that among the exports from Japan to Korea
there were items the end uses of which were unclear,
and what they would be used for was unknown.
Some of the fluoride-related exports could be used for chemical weapons,
and the fate of those exports was unknown.
In response, Japan inquired Korea.
For example, if fluoride-related exports were being
transferred north and used for chemical weapons,
that would be a problem.
However, Korea simply ignored Japan’s inquiries...
.
So Japandecided on export controls for three items, including hydrofluoric acid.
That said, as I mentioned earlier,
it is not that exports were banned.
The export licenses were simply tightened, meaning the process became stricter.
Also, accordingly, from August 28,
Korea was removed from the White List.
“White List” means, simply put,
a country whose trade controls are deemed solid,
and is recognized as such.
For example, if items Japan exports are used to produce chemical weapons,
you would want strict controls,
and if a country’s management is sound and problem is unlikely,
it is recognized as a White List country,
which allows streamlined export procedures and other benefits.
However, due to concerns about Korea’s control system,
Japan decided to remove Korea from the White List.
Among Asian countries, Korea was the only one on the White List, but now Korea is the only country removed from it.
From what has been said, you can understand that
the removal from the White List was due to concerns about Korea’s management system.
Additionally,
just because Korea was removed from the White List
does not mean Korea cannot trade with Japan.
What it means is that the preferential measures as a White List country are removed.
To illustrate with airline status,
they were Gold members before,
enjoying priority boarding and lounges,
but become Silver,
losing those privileges, though you can still fly,
that is, something like that.
However, last week, following the White List removal,
Korea decided to terminate GSOMIA.
White List removal is a matter of trade policy.
However, the Korean government has used it as a diplomatic card.
Normally, you would think, “Huh?”
Why would removing Korea from the White List lead to GSOMIA’s termination?
Minister of Foreign Affairs Taro Kono has said
“it is an entirely different dimension of issue,” but
the connection is hard to see...
That’s all for today.
How about that?
It’s not a simple matter that can be conveyed in a single newsletter,
but
I hope it provides at least a rough understanding of the overall issues related to Japan-Korea relations.
With that, thank you for reading until the end today as well.
Shimoyama Keizo
