Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will host South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in her hometown of Nara on Tuesday for a summit aimed at stabilizing relations between the two neighbors as Tokyo’s concerns about China’s growing power intensify.
The visit comes amid heightened diplomatic activity across the region. Lee traveled to China a week ago and met with President Xi Jinping, as Beijing seeks to strengthen its ties with Seoul amid rising friction between Japan and China. Japan’s tensions with Beijing have increased after Takaichi said in November that potential Chinese military action against Taiwan could justify Japanese intervention.
Trade, China, and North Korea set to dominate talks
Japanese officials said the Nara meeting will be the leaders’ first full summit and their third meeting in less than three months since Takaichi took office. The agenda is expected to focus on trade, China’s regional posture, and North Korea-related challenges.
Both governments are also navigating pressure tied to President Donald Trump’s unpredictable diplomacy, including U.S. calls for allies to raise defense spending.
Symbolic visit highlights cultural links, while history remains a backdrop
Takaichi and Lee are expected to visit Horyu Temple on Wednesday, a landmark with late 7th- or early 8th-century structures considered among the world’s oldest surviving wooden buildings—often cited as an example of Japan’s early adaptation of Buddhism via the Korean Peninsula. Lee is also scheduled to meet South Korean residents living in Japan before returning home later that day.
While Japan and South Korea share deep cultural and historical links, modern relations have repeatedly been derailed by disputes stemming from Japan’s 1910–1945 colonial rule of Korea. Japan has maintained that wartime compensation issues were settled under a 1965 normalization treaty that included $500 million in economic assistance, but disagreements over forced labor and sexual slavery have persisted for decades.
Leaders are expected to avoid major historical flashpoints
Despite early concerns that Takaichi’s security-focused reputation and speculation about Lee’s potential tilt toward North Korea and China could strain relations, both leaders have so far emphasized improving ties. Takaichi, previously known for visits to Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, did not pray there during key commemorations last year, sending a religious ornament instead.
Media reports said the leaders may also discuss possible humanitarian cooperation tied to the recovery of remains from a former undersea mining site in western Japan, where 180 workers—including 136 Korean forced laborers—were killed in a 1942 accident. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary said the two governments have been discussing possible DNA analysis of remains found at the site last year.
Sources:
Reuters / South Korea’s Lee to head for Japan summit a week after meeting China’s Xi
Prime Minister’s Office of Japan / Designation of the Prime Minister (Takaichi Sanae)
