JapanSouth Korean Relations Historical Legacies Relations between Japan

Japan-South Korean Relations

Historical Legacies • Relations between Japan and Korea date back two millennia • Cultural proximity – Language family – Written characters – Confucianism – Buddhism –. . .

Japanese Invasions • 1592 -1598, Japanese invasion was defeated by joint China-Korea forces. • 1894 -1895 war between Qing China and Japan over control of Korea. • 1904 -1905 war between Russia and Japan • 1910 Japan annexed Korea

Japan’s Occupation 1910 -1945 • Current historical issues: – Japanese statements of remorse for World War II – Korean laborers during World War II – Korean “comfort women” during World War II – Yasukuni Shrine (convicted war criminals) –. . .

Wartime Atrocities in the Relations • Kono Statement of 1993 – The statement, named after then Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono, contained a landmark apology to the sex slaves known euphemistically in Japan as “comfort women. ” • Murayama Statement of 1995 – Then socialist Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama (1994 -1996) apologized for wartime suffering inflicted by Japan on its Asian neighbors.

Normalization of Relations 1965 • President Park Chung-Hee of South Korea established diplomatic relations with Japan. • Economic benefits • Resentment

Territorial Dispute • Dokdo (in Korean) / Takeshima (in Japanese) • South Korean government position: – “Dokdo. . . is an integral part of Korean territory historically, geographically, and under international law. ” • Japanese government position: – “Takeshima is clearly an inherent territory of Japan, in the light of historical facts and based upon international law. ”

Trading Partners • South Korea is Japan’s – 3 rd largest export market (8%) – 6 th largest source of imports (5%) • Japan is South Korea’s – 3 rd largest export market (7%) – 2 nd largest source of imports (12%) • Japan => South Korea $64 billion • South Korea => Japan $39 billion

Trade and Investment 2010 2011 5. 96% Japan-South Korea total trade growth Japanese $1. 085 $2. 439 investment in billion South Korean investment in Japan 2012 2013 -4. 35% 10. 55% $3. 996 $3. 286 billion $559 $47 million

Role of US and China • US bilateral alliances with Japan and with South Korea respectively – Common concerns over North Korea’s nuclear program and China’s rising power • China is the top trade partner of Japan and of South Korea