Japanese PM's approval ratings could affect future ties with S. Korea

As Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's approval rating has fallen below 20 percent, attention is focusing on its impact on future bilateral relations between Japan and South Korea. Since the inauguration of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, bilateral ties have improved under the leadership of the two leaders, with Yoon and Kishida holding seven summits this year alone.

"The current bilateral relationship cannot be turned over like the palm of a hand even if the Japanese government changes in the future," said diplomatic sources on Sunday. "The two countries have resolved to some extent the conflict sparked by the South Korean Supreme Court's ruling ordering Japanese firms to compensate forced labor victims, and the 'Camp David' summit has yielded notable results in security cooperation." Lee Won-duk, a professor of Japanese studies at Kookmin University, said. "Few leaders in the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan are discussing a different path for trilateral cooperation. The current path will continue no matter who the next Japanese prime minister is."

Other observers say that Shinzo Abe's hardline conservative group, the Abe faction, may not afford to focus on issues such as Japan-South Korea relations as it has recently been under investigation for suspected creation of slush funds.

Some argue that the current political situation in Japan, including Prime Minister Kishida's plummeting approval ratings and the threat of Abe Faction’s collapse, will negatively affect Seoul-Tokyo relations in the medium to long term. "It may be difficult to see Kishida as responsive as he did when South Korea was proactive," said Jin Chang-soo, director of the Center for Japanese Studies at the Sejong Institute. As for the Abe Faction’s crisis, he said, "The situation may become unmanageable if and when hardline arguments within the LDP come out randomly and chaotically."


71wook@donga.com