South Korea President Hints at Prizing Japan Over Tradition, Ahead of Visits to Japan, United States

By Kazusa Yoda / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

0:01 JST, August 21, 2025

SEOUL — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung implied that his decision to visit Japan before the United States shows a willingness to buck convention and reflects a practical diplomacy that prioritizes national interests.

Lee hinted at this stance during an interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun on Tuesday.

Lee is scheduled to visit Japan on Saturday and Sunday and then travel to the United States for a three-day visit from Sunday. It is unusual for a South Korean president to visit Japan before the United States, a key ally.

In their first face-to-face meeting on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit meeting in June, Lee and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba agreed to a policy of steadily improving their countries’ ties through close communication, including reciprocal visits of their heads of government.

Lee explained that he decided to visit Japan before the United States to “put into practice” what he and Ishiba agreed on during the June meeting.

Quoting a Korean proverb that means, “Out of sight, out of mind,” Lee stressed the significance of reciprocal visits. “The more often we see each other, the closer we become and the more trust we can build,” he said.

“I hope the Japanese prime minister will also visit South Korea when his schedule allows, so that we can strengthen our substantive cooperation through frequent exchanges,” he added.

Lee also said he intended to exchange views with Ishiba on “areas of mutual benefit, such as economic and sociocultural issues, private-sector exchanges, the environment and security.”

He added that trilateral cooperation among Japan, the United States and South Korea, along with the U.S.-South Korea alliance, “will be a fundamental axis in the economic and security fields,” indicating he will link his visit to Japan and to the United States to trilateral cooperation.