Has Trump united Japan, China and South Korea?

Foreign ministers from Japan, China and South Korea met in Tokyo on Saturday to discuss cooperation on trade, regional security and other issues amid rising geopolitical tensions. Which simply put translates to the fallout from Trump’s trade wars.

The meeting between the East Asian neighbours — whose relations have historically been fraught with tensions and territorial disputes — comes amid the threat of trade tariffs by US President Donald Trump.

“Given the increasingly severe international situation, I believe we may truly be at a turning point in history,” Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said at the start of the meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and South Korea’s top diplomat Cho Tae-yul.

“It has become more important than ever to make efforts to overcome division and confrontation through dialogue and cooperation,” Iwaya said.

Strengthening East Asian cooperation

China’s Wang Yi pointed out that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, and said that “only by facing history honestly can we better build the future.”

“Strengthening East Asian cooperation” would allow the three countries to “jointly resist risks” and promote “mutual understanding” between their peoples, Wang added.

South Korea’s Cho Tae-yul highlighted that their three-way cooperation could send “a message of hope for the future to the world.”

The three countries rely on trade between themselves and export heavily to the United States, their most profitable zone. So they have a lot in common when it comes to tackling the tariffs imposed on China.

In addition to trade, among the topics due to be addressed on Saturday was the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, a goal that was reaffirmed when the countries’ leaders met in Seoul in May — the first such summit in five years.

“The peace and security of the Korean Peninsula are essential conditions for peace and prosperity in East Asia and the world, and I hope that candid discussion on the North Korean nuclear issue will take place today,” Cho said.

Unlike Tokyo and Seoul, Beijing is one of North Korea’s main international supporters, providing economic and political support to the largely isolated regime in Pyongyang.

Japan and South Korea are close allies with the US — both nations host thousands of American troops on their territories. All three view China as a threat to regional security.

3-way leaders summit

On Friday, the three foreign ministers met with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who highlighted the need for “pragmatic diplomacy.”

Although China has been the worst affected, all three East Asian nations have felt the impact of tariffs imposed by Trump since he returned to the White House in January.

Apart from trade and North Korea, the ministers were also due to address climate change, aging populations, cooperation on natural disasters, and Russia’s war in Ukraine, among other policy areas.

The ministers are hoping to be able to set a tripartite leaders’ summit by the end of 2025, Japanese public broadcaster NHK said.

Bilateral talks will also be held later on Saturday, including the first “high-level economic dialogue” between Japan and China in six years.

Japan hopes to be able to restart exports of Japanese seafood to China, which were stopped in 2023 after Japan started releasing wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean.