South Korean, US and Japanese Trilateral Military Drill Was “Joint” but Not “Collaborative”

South Korea, the United States and Japan conducted joint naval drills south of Jeju Island from June 21 to 22. In this attention-grabbing maneuver, the U.S. and Japan deliberately flexed their muscles while South Korea intentionally kept a low profile. Each nation had a different purpose in mind and maintained a different pace, adding awkwardness to the whole exercise.

According to the introduction by the South Korean Department of Defense, the South Korean navy, U.S. Navy and Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force sent over destroyers, military logistics support ships, anti-submarine helicopters, etc. and conducted exercises such as maritime search and rescue training. The U.S. Department of Defense said that although South Korea, the U.S. and Japan conducted joint search and rescue drills several times near Hawaii and the Sea of Japan, this was the first time that U.S. aircraft carriers and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force participated in a trilateral drill near the Korean Peninsula.

It was not unusual for the U.S. to join South Korea and Japan in a drill as both are important allies of the U.S. in the Asia Pacific. However, South Korea and Japan still hold grudges against each other regarding historical and territorial issues. All three nations often conduct drills, but a joint military drill is very rare. The Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun commented: “If the U.S. does not play an intermediary role, Japan and South Korea are unlikely to collaborate.”

As a “peacemaker” between South Korea and Japan, the motivation of “Uncle Sam” is not difficult to guess — whether out of consideration for its return to the Asia Pacific or gaining opportunities on the Korean Peninsula — the U.S. needs to solidify its traditional ally relationship with Japan and South Korea and strengthen cooperative combat capability. In fact, at the Japan-U.S. 2+2 Ministerial Security Meeting last year this trilateral military drill was on the agenda, but South Korea rejected it.

In order to carry out the trilateral military drill, the U.S. then proposed a compromise that broke the South Korean and U.S. military exercises into two stages: June 21 to 22, a “joint relief” drill among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan and June 23 to 25, a South Korea-U.S. military exercise that only South Korean and U.S. troops would attend.

Since the U.S. went to so much trouble, Japan readily took the hint. For Japan, the trilateral drill was a great opportunity to show unity and answer North Korea’s “provocations.” “Only through constant practice will Japan, the U.S. and South Korea learn how to conduct joint operations. This is not to initiate attacks, but to learn how to deal with coming threats,” said the Japanese Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi, emphasizing the military significance of the exercise. Sankei Shimbun used a quote from a foreign ministry official: “Although Japan and South Korea are not exactly allies, they are still neighboring countries. We hope that the Korean administration will facilitate collaboration with Japan.”

The U.S. and Japan “quickly became partners,” which South Korea may not appreciate. Although in the end it reluctantly accepted Japan, the South Korean administration has kept a low profile since the preparation stage in order to avoid irritating domestic public opinion. Prior to the drill, because South Korea was reluctant to release information prematurely, the Pentagon had to publish the news first. Furthermore, the South Korean Department of Defense continually emphasized the “humanitarian nature” and “routine formality” of the drill and refused to disclose the specific number of personnel and ships; it did not even formally acknowledge the participation of U.S. aircraft carriers.

Regarding the South Korean, the U.S. and Japanese joint military drill, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Weimin Liu said that international society, especially the Asia-Pacific countries, should focus more on the maintenance of the Korean Peninsula and peace and stability of the Northeast Asia region, not the opposite. Looking back now, it seems that the trilateral military drill not only failed to contribute to regional stability, but also ended in embarrassment due to grudge between Japan and South Korea; one may well say that the maneuver was “joint” but not “collaborative.”