South Korea, Japan reaffirm denuclearisation goal, closer defence ties

South Korea and Japan reaffirmed their shared goal of denuclearizing the Korean peninsula and agreed to resume joint search-and-rescue drills, signaling an advancement in security cooperation between the neighboring countries. The agreement was reached during a meeting in Seoul on Sunday between South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi.

The two ministers committed to fostering regional stability through bilateral efforts and their trilateral partnership with Washington. "Both ministers shared the view to continue cooperation for maintaining regional peace and stability amid a grave security environment," stated South Korea's defense ministry. This renewed cooperation aligns with policies pursued by President Lee Jae Myung and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who have been working to deepen ties since 2022, addressing historical grievances stemming from Japan's colonial rule.

Past tensions, notably Seoul's 2019 move to terminate the GSOMIA intelligence-sharing pact following Tokyo's export restrictions, highlight the historical challenges. However, under President Lee and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's agreement in 2025 for closer security and economic ties, defense ministers committed to working with Washington against North Korea's nuclear ambitions and its growing military alliance with Russia. This includes collaboration on AI, unmanned systems, and annual trilateral drills.

Further enhancing their cooperation, Ahn and Koizumi agreed to promote exchanges between their air forces' aerobatic teams, the Black Eagles and Blue Impulse. They also plan to hold a joint humanitarian search-and-rescue exercise in June, the first in nearly a decade. These discussions follow previous talks in January and a meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue in May, where a potential military-logistics support agreement was discussed.

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Both ministers shared the view to continue cooperation for maintaining regional peace and stability amid a grave security environment