US, Japan, South Korea Security Advisors To Hold Tokyo Meeting

The South Korean presidential office has confirmedthat National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong will visit Tokyo from 14-15 June for talks with his US and Japanese counterparts, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and National Security Secretariat Secretary General Takeo Akiba.

• The three will have in-depth discussions on issues including, 'North Korea, responding to major regional and international issues, the direction of trilateral cooperation between Korea, the US and Japan.' The trilateral meeting will be followed by individual bilaterals between the security advisors.
• The US continues to work towards improving ties between Japan and South Korea. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida have visited one another's nations this year in what has been seen as a signal of notable rapprochement between the two countries. While both are close US allies, historical grievances related to Japan's occupation of Korea in the first half of the 20th C. have made close cooperation on security issues a sensitive subject.
• A closer security relationship between Seoul and Tokyo would be viewed favourably in Washington, D.C., but would also be seen as a burgeoning security threat in northeast Asia by Beijing. Joint Chinese-Russian air patrols have already strayed into South Korea's air defense identification zone in recent weeks highlighting the increased tensions.