Yoon Strengthens Security Cooperation with Japan, Expands 'Washington Declaration' (Update)

Joint Press Conference with Prime Minister Kishida... Yoon "Does Not Exclude Japan's Participation"
Shared Recognition on North Korean Threat Response, Kishida "Unilateral Changes by Force"

Fifty-two days after their last summit in March, President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio met again to reaffirm their commitment to cooperation in economic and security fields. In particular, President Yoon presented a new role for Japan in the 'Washington Declaration,' which is considered the greatest achievement of his recent state visit to the United States.

On the afternoon of the 7th, President Yoon held a joint press conference on the Korea-Japan summit at the Yongsan Presidential Office and responded to a question about whether the 'Washington Declaration,' which includes measures to strengthen extended deterrence between Korea and the U.S., could be expanded to include cooperation among Korea, the U.S., and Japan by saying, "We do not exclude Japan's participation."

President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who visited Korea, shake hands after a joint press conference at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul on the 7th.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

In particular, President Yoon elaborated, "The Washington Declaration is not finalized; it is a process where discussions continue, and joint planning and joint implementation are carried out to fill in the details." He added, "Once this is on track and Japan is prepared in its relationship with the U.S., I think this is an issue where cooperation can happen anytime."

On this day, the two leaders showed stronger determination than at the March summit regarding cooperative responses and expanded vigilance against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. Security was regarded as the field where the scope of cooperation between the two countries would broaden the most through this summit. Korea and the U.S. recently strengthened extended deterrence against North Korea by adopting the 'Washington Declaration' at their summit. As the Korea-U.S. agreed to establish a Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) and accelerate cooperation, Korea and Japan can also align their efforts on security grounds.

On the 3rd, Cho Tae-yong, Director of the National Security Office, held a Korea-Japan security chiefs meeting and a National Security Council (NSC) economic security dialogue in Seoul with Akiba Takeo, Director of Japan's National Security Secretariat, to broadly discuss mutual concerns such as North Korea and regional and international situations. The two sides also held the inaugural meeting of the Korea-Japan NSC economic security dialogue, agreed upon during the March summit, and discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between Korea and Japan in areas such as supply chains and advanced technologies.

On this day, President Yoon referred to North Korea's successive provocations, saying, "We shared the recognition that these pose a serious threat to peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula and Japan but also worldwide." Prime Minister Kishida also pointed out North Korea's provocative acts as "unilateral changes by force" and emphasized the need to strengthen deterrence and response capabilities among the Korea-U.S.-Japan trilateral framework. Regarding the real-time sharing of North Korean missile data agreed upon at the Korea-U.S.-Japan summit in November last year, he explained, "I welcome the progress in discussions."

A notable point suggesting that the security cooperation system among Korea, the U.S., and Japan will be further strengthened beyond just Korea and Japan also stood out. Both leaders forecasted that discussions on strengthening the Korea-U.S.-Japan security framework would deepen at the G7 Hiroshima summit. President Yoon stated, "I welcome the progress of inter-agency discussions on the implementation plan for real-time sharing of North Korean missile warning information agreed upon at the Korea-U.S.-Japan summit in Phnom Penh last November, and we agreed to continue Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation." Prime Minister Kishida also said, "We will hold a Korea-U.S.-Japan summit at the G7 to deepen discussions further."

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