뉴스레터

The keynote speech was given by
Cho Tae-young, First Vice Minister of
Foreign Affairs of Korea

On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule, the NAHF invited government officials and experts from Korea, China, and Japan to the 5th East Asian Community Forum (EACF), jointly organized by the Asiatic Research Institute (ARI) at Korea University and held on August 3, 2015. The EACF is an annual event, jointly organized by Korea University, Tsinghua University, and the University of Tokyo with support from the NAHF, to which Seoul, Tokyo, and Beijing have taken turns playing host since the first EACF in Seoul in 2011. This is an important year for looking back on the modern and contemporary periods of Northeast Asian history because it marks the 70th anniversary of Korea's liberation and division, China's victory in the wars against Japan and fascists, and Japan's end of the war, and also the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Japan. For the international community, this is also the 70th year since the U.N. was established. Against this backdrop, "70 Years of the Divide and Northeast Asia's Next 100 Years" was chosen for the theme of the Forum this year.

The Forum consisted of a keynote speech and a roundtable discussion on 'Moving Beyond the Past and Toward Trilateral Cooperation in Northeast Asia' in which former government officials from the three Northeast Asian countries participated, followed by Session 1 ('History, Ideas, and Experiences of East Asian Cooperation') and Session 2 ('Historical Reconciliation and Regional Cooperation in Northeast Asia'). Three papers were presented at the roundtable, and a total of seven at Sessions 1 and 2. Every one of them emphasized the need for 'cooperation' in the midst of conflict and confrontation.

Heated Discussion for 'Going Far Together'

The keynote speech was given by Cho Tae-young, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Korea, who addressed the need for a cooperation process through regional forums as a solution for communication among the three Northeast Asian countries, pointing out that the tripartite summit hadn't been held since 2012. He went on to explain that the Northeast Asian Peace and Cooperation Initiative, a multilateral cooperation process promoted by the Korean government, aimed to go far together. He suggested to China and Japan that "(the three Northeast Asian countries) should not be distracted by obstacles in sight but fervently discuss their way into a future that would benefit them all."

Lie Jiangyong (刘江永), Vice Dean of the Institute of Modern International Relations at Tsinghua University, presented a paper on 'Geopolitical Thought and Its Implication for China-U.S.-Japan Relations,' in which he pointed out that the U.S.' strategies for pivot to Asia and intervention in disputes over the East China Sea and the South China Sea, and the Japanese Abe administration's plan for an 'Arc of Freedom and Prosperity,' revision to the Guidelines for U.S-Japan Defense Cooperation, and attempt to amend Article 9 of the Peace Constitution were moves to keep China in check, all originating from geopolitical thought found in Western traditions. He criticized that the U.S. and Japan were viewing China's strategy for 'One Belt, One Road (一帶一路)' with suspicion because they were ingrained in geopolitical thought. As Mr. Lie further explained, 'One Belt, One Road' is a new concept that not only denies the old geopolitical thought of the West but seeks a harmonious combination between geopolitics and geoeconomics on the basis of "Harmony between Land and Sea."

Tanaka Hitoshi (田中均), Chairman of the Institute for International Strategy in Japan, said in his presentation and discussion that "the Abe administration's national defense policy, although one can say it is within the framework of Japan's defense-oriented security policy, could generate tensions in the region and, therefore, is unlikely to be accepted by China and Korea, unless appropriate measures to build trust are taken." And Chen Jian (陳健), former Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister and Ambassador to Japan, pointed out Japan's retrogressive perception of history and rearmament as obstacles to 'cooperation,' expressing concerns that "Japan's dangerous choice to go for historical revisionism and military expansionism runs the risk of not only jeopardizing Sino-Japanese relations but also bringing the East Asian region into confrontation."

'Minilateralism' for Cooperation as the First Step Toward an East Asian Community

Commenting on Mr. Chen's remark, Mr. Tanaka emphasized that "military-to-military direct communication hotlines and crisis management procedure agreements are also urgently needed in order to reduce the risk of accidental collision and to mitigate damage in the event of a crisis." A heated discussion ensued. When asked by the audience "What roles should the three Northeast Asian countries play in building an East Asian community?" Kim Sung-han, professor at Korea University, answered, "In East Asia, given its geographic vastness and heterogeneous socio-economic nature, establishing a regional community like the EU is unfeasible, at least not immediately. Therefore, I suggest trying 'minilateralism' for cooperation as a catalyst to accelerate the process of building such a community."

Lee Hyun-ju, Secretary General of the Northeast Asian History Foundation, shared his feelings about the Forum's theme "70 Years of the Divide and Northeast Asia's Next 100 Years," saying that "a hundred years in the future seemed like too distant to discuss, until I realized its great significance as a topic after considering that Northeast Asia today is still being affected by the historical consequences of the Sino-Japanese War, in which China and Japan fought to gain control over Korea 120 years ago, and the resultant the Treaty of Shimonoseki. Then Mr. Lee encouraged the participating scholars from the three countries to make constructive suggestions for restoring the 'tripartite cooperation system.'

And Iwatani Shigeo (岩谷滋雄), Secretary General of the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat, emphasized that the center of human civilization is shifting to Asia and how much longer it would maintain its glory and existence depended on the level of coexistence and cooperation among the three Northeast Asian countries. As part of efforts toward this end, Kobayashi Somei (小林聰明), professor at Nihon University, presented his paper on 'Historical Reconciliation and the Possibility of Establishing an Archives Center for East Asia,' in which he pointed out that the past of East Asia is a major source of serious confrontation because it has not been completely established in the domain of 'history' but has been moved into the domain of 'politics.' Noting that there was no magical panacea, he suggested that Korea, China, and Japan should all participate in establishing 'an Archives Center for East Asia.'

Finally, I agreed to Professor Kobayashi's suggestion, but added that "Japanese Prime Minister Abe's historical revisionism must be stopped immediately, and China as a responsible power in East Asia with its own core interests to care about should also act responsibly in managing common interests within the region."

※ A collection of papers presented at the 5th EACF is available at the Northeast Asian History Foundation website.