Lee Jae-myung "Must Stop Self-Defeating Move of Involving Japan"... Ruling and Opposition Intensify Security Clash Over 'Ingonggi vs Iljangi'

Lee Representative "Can give a signal recognizing the Self-Defense Forces... Violates the national interest of the Republic of Korea"

People Power Party "Misleads the public with frivolous historical awareness" rebuttal
Seong Il-jong "Does this mean the Rising Sun Flag is allowed?"

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Park Joon-ee, Kwon Hyun-ji] On the 11th, the ruling and opposition parties clashed over security perspectives on the Korean Peninsula. When Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, pointed out that the joint East Sea exercises by South Korea, the U.S., and Japan could result in the Rising Sun Flag being displayed on the Korean Peninsula, the People Power Party retorted, "Is the national flag allowed then?" escalating into a confrontation framed as 'pro-Japan vs. pro-North Korea.'

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending an emergency security measures meeting held at the National Assembly on the 11th, listening attentively to the remarks of the participants. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On that day, Lee criticized the trilateral exercises again during an emergency security meeting held at the National Assembly in the morning, saying, "The self-defeating move of dragging Japan into the Korean Peninsula under the pretext of a crisis must stop." He stated, "The relationship between Japan and South Korea should be approached by separating socio-economic issues, human rights, and historical matters," and added, "Recently, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration has been inviting the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to conduct joint live-fire exercises near Dokdo repeatedly. This is an unacceptable defense disaster and self-inflicted security harm." He continued, "This could send a signal that South Korea formally recognizes the Japanese Self-Defense Forces as a regular military," emphasizing, "Recognizing the Japanese Self-Defense Forces as a formal military is a core agenda pursued by the Japanese right-wing government and is an act against South Korea's national interest."

The previous day, Lee said on a YouTube broadcast regarding the South Korea-U.S.-Japan joint East Sea exercises, "We can sufficiently protect our security with the U.S. alliance and our own military and defense capabilities, so why bring Japan into this?" He added, "We cannot imagine the day when the Japanese military enters the Korean Peninsula and the Rising Sun Flag is displayed again on the Peninsula, but such a thing could actually happen."

However, the People Power Party opposed this perception, calling it a "frivolous historical understanding" and accused it of "misleading the public."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jung Jin-seok, emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, criticized via social media on the same day, saying, "Lee Jae-myung's 'Japanese military stationed in Korea' theory is one of the two major falsehoods and reckless remarks that undermine South Korea's security, following Moon Jae-in's 'Kim Jong-un denuclearization promise theory.'" Jung said, "Do young Koreans entering Osaka through Kansai Airport really sympathize with the claim that 'if we conduct maritime exercises with Japan, the Japanese military with the Rising Sun Flag will station on our land, leading to a situation like the late Joseon period'?" He added, "I hope they do not mislead the public with such frivolous historical perceptions."

Seong Il-jong, chairman of the Policy Committee, also rebutted Lee's remarks during a National Assembly audit countermeasure meeting, stating, "In 2007, during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, a Japanese Self-Defense Forces warship flying the Rising Sun Flag entered Incheon Port, and the current South Korea-U.S.-Japan joint exercises were agreed upon during the Moon Jae-in administration." He added, "This is a message for former Presidents Roh and Moon, but perhaps you are pointing your criticism in the wrong direction."

He continued, "I ask Lee Jae-myung, who developed nuclear weapons? Who directly threatened us by targeting our critical facilities?" and added, "You said the Rising Sun Flag could be displayed on the Korean Peninsula, so does that mean the national flag is allowed to be displayed?"

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