This undated file photo, released by the Associated Press, shows Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Korea Bizwire) — When Sanae Takaichi walked into Japan’s Diet chamber on Tuesday to become the country’s first female prime minister, the moment marked both a breakthrough and a question mark for East Asia’s uneasy diplomacy.
In Seoul, officials were quick to strike a tone of optimism. “We will continue to closely communicate and cooperate with Japan’s new Cabinet to maintain the positive momentum in bilateral relations,” said Lee Jae-woong, spokesperson for South Korea’s foreign ministry. He emphasized the need for “a future-oriented relationship,” a phrase that has become shorthand in both capitals for turning the page on a century of fraught history.
For nearly two years, South Korea and Japan have managed a rare detente—mending rifts over wartime forced labor, reviving security cooperation, and coordinating on trade and technology amid China’s rise. That delicate progress, however, now faces its first test.
Takaichi, a longtime conservative known for her hard-line views on history, comes to power with political instincts forged in the nationalist wing of Japan’s ruling party. As economic security minister, she championed tougher supply-chain policies aimed at Beijing and a stronger defense posture alongside Washington.
But her record also includes gestures that have unsettled Seoul: regular visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, which honors convicted war criminals, and comments defending Japan’s colonial-era actions on the Korean Peninsula.
In a small but telling gesture last week, Takaichi sent an offering to Yasukuni rather than attending in person—a symbolic nod, perhaps, to the sensitivities surrounding her imminent rise. Whether that restraint marks a new pragmatism or merely tactical patience remains unclear.
President Lee Jae Myung’s government is preparing to send formal congratulations and arrange an introductory phone call—likely their first exchange before the two leaders potentially meet in person next week at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju.
The stakes are high. Japan is set to host the next trilateral summit with South Korea and China later this year, a forum that could either extend the fragile regional cooperation of recent months or expose its limits.
For Seoul, Takaichi’s ascent is a reminder that every thaw in East Asia’s diplomacy still carries the chill of history just beneath the surface.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
