Historical tensions between South Korea and Japan have been frustrating – and worrying – American leaders for years. At a time of rising security threats in Asia, the US must insist that its two most important regional allies move beyond old tensions to build a strong and effective defense partnership.
ATLANTA – American diplomats like to portray their country’s allies in glowing terms. So the world should take note when they do not – such as when US Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, at a recent conference in Washington, DC, on Asian security, publicly scolded South Korea for its seemingly endless vilification of Japan. According to Sherman, South Korea’s stance – reflected in its demand that Japan apologize, once again, for forcing Korean women to provide sexual services to the Imperial Army during World War II – has produced “paralysis, not progress.”
ATLANTA – American diplomats like to portray their country’s allies in glowing terms. So the world should take note when they do not – such as when US Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, at a recent conference in Washington, DC, on Asian security, publicly scolded South Korea for its seemingly endless vilification of Japan. According to Sherman, South Korea’s stance – reflected in its demand that Japan apologize, once again, for forcing Korean women to provide sexual services to the Imperial Army during World War II – has produced “paralysis, not progress.”