Will the 'Sofa Talk' with Abe from 2 Years Ago Be Reenacted... Improvement in Bilateral Relations Remains 'Unlikely'?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Attention is focused on whether President Moon Jae-in will have a 'pull-aside' style meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Suga at the Group of Seven (G7) summit to be held in the UK from the 11th to the 13th (local time). The Blue House is currently keeping the possibility open. However, even if the meeting takes place, it is analyzed that it will not have a significant impact on improving Korea-Japan relations.

On the 9th, a Blue House official responded to reporters' questions by saying, "There is nothing to confirm regarding a Korea-Japan summit at this time," but added, "We are always open to dialogue with the Japanese side," leaving open the possibility of a pull-aside style conversation.

A pull-aside refers to an informal meeting that takes place freely during multilateral diplomacy rather than a formal session. When President Moon attended the ASEAN+3 summit in November 2019, he had an unscheduled 11-minute chat with former Prime Minister Abe on a sofa, which was also a kind of pull-aside style meeting.

A Blue House official explained, "There are not many leaders attending the G7 meeting, and few staff members accompanying them, so even if a formal meeting is not scheduled in advance, you can see leaders standing and talking, and they can also freely converse while sitting on a sofa."

Accordingly, attention is on whether Prime Minister Suga will reenact the 'sofa chat' from two years ago at this G7. Despite the South Korean government's conciliatory stance, Japan still maintains a high-handed attitude, but the recent overturning of the Supreme Court ruling on forced labor compensation by a lower court on the 7th could serve as momentum. The U.S. desire to strengthen Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation in response to the close ties between North Korea, China, and Russia is also expected to be considered. The progressive-leaning Japanese media outlet Asahi Shimbun urged through an editorial on the 10th to "use this multilateral diplomatic stage as an opportunity to resolve Korea-Japan issues."

However, there are criticisms that a brief face-to-face chat will not easily improve bilateral relations. Shin Beom-chul, head of the Foreign and Security Center at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, said, "It may create momentum for improving relations, but at best, it will only address issues like Dokdo," and pointed out, "The Suga administration does not seem willing to improve relations with the Moon administration, which is in its final term."

Meanwhile, the Blue House announced that President Moon will conduct a diplomatic tour including Austria and Spain on the occasion of attending the G7 summit. Blue House spokesperson Park Kyung-mi said, "Invited by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, President Moon will attend the G7, and after the G7 schedule, he will make a state visit to Austria from the 13th to the 15th, holding summit talks with President Alexander Van der Bellen and Prime Minister Sebastian Kurz," adding, "Then, from the 15th to the 17th, he will make a state visit to Spain to meet King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Pedro S?nchez." To promote parliamentary diplomacy between the two countries, Democratic Party lawmakers Hong Young-pyo and Yoon Gun-young will accompany the president as special envoys on the state visits.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.