Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited South Korea on the 6th to consolidate his political legacy

Outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit South Korea on September 6 for a summit meeting with South Korean President Yoon Seok-yuol. The analysis believes that Kishida's visit is mainly to consolidate his political legacy, show his achievements in the field of diplomacy, and further enhance his political image.

South Korea's presidential office announced Tuesday (September 3) that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit South Korea for two days starting on September 6. During this period, Kishida will hold bilateral talks with Yin Xiyue, and the two countries are consulting on specific topics.

Japan's Kyodo news agency quoted a number of diplomatic sources in South Korea and Japan as saying that the two governments are exploring the implementation of the "pre-clearance" plan, so that South Koreans traveling to Japan can wait for boarding, first handle immigration screening, and shorten customs clearance time when they arrive. This may be one of the announcements when Kishida meets with Yin Xiyue.

This week's meeting will be the 12th between Kishida and Yin. In March last year, the leaders of South Korea and Japan resumed "shuttle diplomacy" between their heads of state for the first time in 12 years, significantly improving bilateral relations. In August 2023, Yoon Siyue, Kishida Fumio and US President Joe Biden met at Camp David and agreed to strengthen security and economic cooperation among the three countries.

Kishida's trip may be aimed at consolidating his position in the party

Kishida has announced he will not run for president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The election will be held on the 27th, and the newly elected president of the Liberal Democratic Party will succeed Kishida as prime minister. In other words, Kishida will step down in less than a month. At this time, he still arranged a summit with the South Korean president, which surprised the outside world.

Sejong University professor Hosaka Yuji, an expert on Korea and Japan, said in an interview with South Korean online media that Kishida may want to highlight his achievements in improving relations between Korea and Japan and consolidate his position in the party, so that no matter who is elected as the next prime minister of Japan, he can become a political elder who continues to exert influence.

Cho Sung-yeol, a military professor at Kyungnam University, said, The Yoon administration also wants to take this opportunity to confirm the continuity of security cooperation between Japan and South Korea, adding, Even if Japan has a new prime minister, the cooperation between South Korea and Japan will not fundamentally change.

However, the "Seoul Economy" pointed out that Kishida's visit to South Korea may pose a political burden for Yoon. Some South Korean public opinion believes that Yin Xiyue has repeatedly compromised and made concessions to Japan, and when Japan listed Sasado Jinshan on the World Heritage list, it did not add the word "forced" North Korean labor as required by the South Korean side, which caused dissatisfaction among South Koreans. Therefore, the analysis believes that unless Kishida's trip can bring a "surprise" that satisfies South Korean public opinion, there is no bonus for Yin Xiyue.