The world is currently in the midst of a significant civilizational transition. The ongoing U.S.-China technological rivalry over artificial intelligence (AI), the seemingly endless war in Ukraine, and the crises in the Middle East, including the Iran conflict and the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, are all contributing to a renewed era of intense reconfiguration in international order.
As we move toward the mid-21st century, today's world is neither the unipolar order dominated by the U.S. during the Cold War nor a fully multipolar system. While the U.S. retains its status as the world's strongest nation with absolute military power and dollar hegemony, China is rapidly closing the gap with its manufacturing, AI, supply chains, and population. In contrast, the European Union, which once led global civilization, is gradually losing vitality due to low birth rates, aging populations, energy crises, and weakened industrial competitiveness. Russia, too, is on a path of decline, suffering from military and economic fatigue following the war in Ukraine. At the center of this monumental change is a newly emerging region: Northeast Asia, where South Korea, China, and Japan are located.
Since the 18th century, the center of global hegemony has shifted from Western Europe, including Britain, France, and Germany, across the Atlantic to the United States. The Industrial Revolution, financial revolution, maritime dominance, and military power have long been monopolized by Western civilization. However, manufacturing, semiconductors, AI, batteries, shipbuilding, and advanced supply chains are increasingly moving toward the Far East. The flow of global wealth, technology, culture, and talent is shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific and back to the industrial belt of East Asia.
Notably, South Korea and Japan are rapidly evolving from a history of long-standing conflicts into a strategic partnership. The summit held yesterday in Andong, South Korea, between President Lee Jae-myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was not merely a diplomatic event; it symbolized a reconfiguration of the East Asian order.
The two leaders agreed to jointly respond to energy supply chain uncertainties arising from the Middle East crisis, discussing cooperation in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil, expanding supply chain partnerships, and collaborating on oil and petroleum product swaps. This signifies a movement toward a quasi-economic alliance that goes beyond mere economic cooperation.
Most significantly, shuttle diplomacy between the two countries has now entered a fully established phase. The expansion of diplomatic venues beyond Seoul and Tokyo to regional cities like Busan, Nara, Gyeongju, and Andong indicates that South Korea-Japan relations are transitioning from a historically cold diplomacy to a stage characterized by human trust and grassroots diplomacy.
Just a few years ago, South Korea-Japan relations were marked by extreme confrontations over issues such as forced labor, comfort women, and export restrictions. However, international circumstances are pulling the two countries back into reality. With China's rise, North Korea's nuclear threats, shifts in U.S. strategy, and the energy crisis in the Middle East, South Korea and Japan are beginning to realize that survival is increasingly difficult without cooperation.
Economically, both countries need each other. Japan excels in materials, components, and precision technology, while South Korea boasts global competitiveness in semiconductors, batteries, shipbuilding, and digital industries. If Japan's foundational technologies combine with South Korea's execution capabilities, Japan's craftsmanship with South Korea's speed, and Japan's industrial accumulation with South Korea's innovative dynamism, East Asia could become the most powerful axis of global manufacturing and AI industries.
In the AI era, global supply chains can no longer be maintained by a single nation. For instance, in semiconductors, design, equipment, materials, manufacturing, packaging, data centers, power, and cooling technologies are all interconnected. South Korea and Japan are becoming a community of shared destiny that must compete while cooperating.
Particularly, the concept of a 'Korea-Japan Economic Community' mentioned by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has now emerged as a realistic strategic task rather than just an idea from business leaders. An economic community does not merely imply expanded trade; it encompasses the potential for a new East Asian community that includes cultural, tourism, sports, youth exchanges, AI cooperation, semiconductor supply chains, energy security, and financial collaboration.
Going forward, South Korea-Japan cooperation should not be limited to industry and technology. It must expand to include financial market stability, currency cooperation, maritime transport route protection, joint energy reserves, joint raw material purchases, tourism infrastructure connections, sports league exchanges, youth camps, joint university research, and collaborative production in film, music, gaming, and animation. Economics is a system, culture is an emotion, and sports and tourism are pathways to open the hearts of nations. A true community is possible when these three areas move together.
Countries around the world are observing this close Korea-Japan relationship with complex perspectives. The United States fundamentally desires strong Korea-Japan cooperation, as a trilateral alliance with South Korea and Japan is essential for countering China, Russia, and North Korea. However, the U.S. may also be wary of a situation where Korea and Japan become too close, as an independent economic and technological block could diminish U.S. influence in East Asia.
China is also closely monitoring the improvement of Korea-Japan relations. China fundamentally seeks to form an East Asian economic zone through Korea-China-Japan cooperation, as the three countries together could create one of the largest manufacturing, trade, technology, and consumer markets in the world. However, China's political system fundamentally differs from the democratic systems of South Korea and Japan, creating both opportunities for cooperation and sources of tension.
China fears that Korea-Japan cooperation may solidify into a U.S.-led containment network against it. Particularly, if South Korea and Japan closely integrate in AI, semiconductors, maritime security, and energy, China may feel significant pressure regarding issues in the East China Sea, Taiwan Strait, and South China Sea. Therefore, China will likely seek to manage Korea-Japan cooperation while maintaining the framework for trilateral Korea-China-Japan collaboration.
Russia's situation is even more complex. The war in Ukraine has rapidly depleted Russia's military and economic power, leaving little capacity to focus on development in the Far East as it did during the Soviet era. While Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, and the Russian Far East are strategically important, they have largely been neglected amid population decline and industrial stagnation.
If, at some point in the future, South Korea and Japan actively participate in the development of the Far East based on their economic and technological strengths, Russia may selectively seek to utilize this rather than outright block it. However, military conflicts or territorial tensions are not desirable. The paths of South Korea and Japan should be characterized by cooperation, development, peaceful investment, and infrastructure connections, transforming the Russian Far East into a new space for collaboration in energy, logistics, agriculture, and climate industries rather than a battleground.
Europe is also watching the rise of East Asia with keen interest. The manufacturing-centered European economy, led by Germany and France, is losing growth momentum amid energy crises, industrial hollowing, and aging populations. In contrast, despite limited resources and declining populations, South Korea and Japan maintain world-class competitiveness in AI, semiconductors, automobiles, batteries, shipbuilding, and cultural industries.
While Europe possesses the strength of norms and institutions, its production and speed capabilities are weakening. South Korea and Japan have the strength of production and speed, but they still lack a larger civilizational vision and joint market strategy. This is where the future of Korea-Japan cooperation becomes crucial. By joining forces, the two countries could create a new model that combines European-style institutions, American-style innovation, and Asian manufacturing capabilities.
In terms of culture and the arts, Korea-Japan cooperation could have a global impact. The combination of South Korea's K-pop, dramas, films, beauty, and food culture with Japan's animation, gaming, literature, design, and craftsmanship could form the most powerful cultural block for the global youth generation. Culture is no longer a secondary industry; it is a national brand, tourism, consumption, diplomacy, and a force that moves the emotions of people worldwide.
Sports can play a similar role. Youth exchanges in soccer, baseball, e-sports leagues, and university sports can become direct pathways to change the emotions of future generations. A handshake and joint training between young athletes can achieve what diplomats have struggled to accomplish for decades. When the younger generation accepts each other as both competitors and friends, history can finally move forward.
Of course, many barriers remain in the Korea-Japan relationship. Historical conflicts over forced labor, comfort women, and the Dokdo issue have not been fully resolved. Anti-Japanese and anti-Korean sentiments still exist within both countries. These issues should not be taken lightly or ignored. Wounds must be acknowledged, and memories respected. However, remembering history and giving up on the future are entirely different matters. Wisdom is needed to remember the past without being trapped by it.
South Korea and Japan must now learn the spirit of 'seeking common ground while preserving differences.' They should understand each other's historical wounds while finding a path for future generations to coexist. As expressed in Chinese classics, this is a time that requires wisdom to pursue commonalities while acknowledging differences.
In the future, Korea-Japan cooperation should expand beyond mere diplomatic engagements to become a community in everyday life. Businesses should connect supply chains and technologies, universities should connect youth and knowledge, and local governments should connect tourism and culture.
The media should not only highlight conflicts but also showcase the structures of cooperation and future possibilities. Above all, it is crucial for the citizens of both countries to recognize each other not as adversaries but as partners in building a shared future. While governments can open the way, it is the citizens who must walk that path. Politics opens doors, economics paves the way, culture connects hearts, and youth completes the future.
The center of global hegemony is now shifting from the West to the East. The Atlantic era that dominated the world since the 18th century is fading, giving way to the Pacific and East Asian era. In this monumental flow, South Korea and Japan can no longer remain anchored in the past.
The recent Korea-Japan summit held in Andong is not just a diplomatic event; it may signal a quiet yet significant directional shift toward the future of East Asia.
History sometimes opens a new era not through war but through cooperation. The Korea-Japan collaboration beginning in the Far East may very well be the starting point of a new world order in the 21st century.
When South Korea and Japan unite, they can become harbingers of global peace and prosperity.
As we move toward the mid-21st century, today's world is neither the unipolar order dominated by the U.S. during the Cold War nor a fully multipolar system. While the U.S. retains its status as the world's strongest nation with absolute military power and dollar hegemony, China is rapidly closing the gap with its manufacturing, AI, supply chains, and population. In contrast, the European Union, which once led global civilization, is gradually losing vitality due to low birth rates, aging populations, energy crises, and weakened industrial competitiveness. Russia, too, is on a path of decline, suffering from military and economic fatigue following the war in Ukraine. At the center of this monumental change is a newly emerging region: Northeast Asia, where South Korea, China, and Japan are located.
Since the 18th century, the center of global hegemony has shifted from Western Europe, including Britain, France, and Germany, across the Atlantic to the United States. The Industrial Revolution, financial revolution, maritime dominance, and military power have long been monopolized by Western civilization. However, manufacturing, semiconductors, AI, batteries, shipbuilding, and advanced supply chains are increasingly moving toward the Far East. The flow of global wealth, technology, culture, and talent is shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific and back to the industrial belt of East Asia.
Notably, South Korea and Japan are rapidly evolving from a history of long-standing conflicts into a strategic partnership. The summit held yesterday in Andong, South Korea, between President Lee Jae-myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was not merely a diplomatic event; it symbolized a reconfiguration of the East Asian order.
The two leaders agreed to jointly respond to energy supply chain uncertainties arising from the Middle East crisis, discussing cooperation in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil, expanding supply chain partnerships, and collaborating on oil and petroleum product swaps. This signifies a movement toward a quasi-economic alliance that goes beyond mere economic cooperation.
Most significantly, shuttle diplomacy between the two countries has now entered a fully established phase. The expansion of diplomatic venues beyond Seoul and Tokyo to regional cities like Busan, Nara, Gyeongju, and Andong indicates that South Korea-Japan relations are transitioning from a historically cold diplomacy to a stage characterized by human trust and grassroots diplomacy.
Just a few years ago, South Korea-Japan relations were marked by extreme confrontations over issues such as forced labor, comfort women, and export restrictions. However, international circumstances are pulling the two countries back into reality. With China's rise, North Korea's nuclear threats, shifts in U.S. strategy, and the energy crisis in the Middle East, South Korea and Japan are beginning to realize that survival is increasingly difficult without cooperation.
Economically, both countries need each other. Japan excels in materials, components, and precision technology, while South Korea boasts global competitiveness in semiconductors, batteries, shipbuilding, and digital industries. If Japan's foundational technologies combine with South Korea's execution capabilities, Japan's craftsmanship with South Korea's speed, and Japan's industrial accumulation with South Korea's innovative dynamism, East Asia could become the most powerful axis of global manufacturing and AI industries.
In the AI era, global supply chains can no longer be maintained by a single nation. For instance, in semiconductors, design, equipment, materials, manufacturing, packaging, data centers, power, and cooling technologies are all interconnected. South Korea and Japan are becoming a community of shared destiny that must compete while cooperating.
Particularly, the concept of a 'Korea-Japan Economic Community' mentioned by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has now emerged as a realistic strategic task rather than just an idea from business leaders. An economic community does not merely imply expanded trade; it encompasses the potential for a new East Asian community that includes cultural, tourism, sports, youth exchanges, AI cooperation, semiconductor supply chains, energy security, and financial collaboration.
Going forward, South Korea-Japan cooperation should not be limited to industry and technology. It must expand to include financial market stability, currency cooperation, maritime transport route protection, joint energy reserves, joint raw material purchases, tourism infrastructure connections, sports league exchanges, youth camps, joint university research, and collaborative production in film, music, gaming, and animation. Economics is a system, culture is an emotion, and sports and tourism are pathways to open the hearts of nations. A true community is possible when these three areas move together.
Countries around the world are observing this close Korea-Japan relationship with complex perspectives. The United States fundamentally desires strong Korea-Japan cooperation, as a trilateral alliance with South Korea and Japan is essential for countering China, Russia, and North Korea. However, the U.S. may also be wary of a situation where Korea and Japan become too close, as an independent economic and technological block could diminish U.S. influence in East Asia.
China is also closely monitoring the improvement of Korea-Japan relations. China fundamentally seeks to form an East Asian economic zone through Korea-China-Japan cooperation, as the three countries together could create one of the largest manufacturing, trade, technology, and consumer markets in the world. However, China's political system fundamentally differs from the democratic systems of South Korea and Japan, creating both opportunities for cooperation and sources of tension.
China fears that Korea-Japan cooperation may solidify into a U.S.-led containment network against it. Particularly, if South Korea and Japan closely integrate in AI, semiconductors, maritime security, and energy, China may feel significant pressure regarding issues in the East China Sea, Taiwan Strait, and South China Sea. Therefore, China will likely seek to manage Korea-Japan cooperation while maintaining the framework for trilateral Korea-China-Japan collaboration.
Russia's situation is even more complex. The war in Ukraine has rapidly depleted Russia's military and economic power, leaving little capacity to focus on development in the Far East as it did during the Soviet era. While Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, and the Russian Far East are strategically important, they have largely been neglected amid population decline and industrial stagnation.
If, at some point in the future, South Korea and Japan actively participate in the development of the Far East based on their economic and technological strengths, Russia may selectively seek to utilize this rather than outright block it. However, military conflicts or territorial tensions are not desirable. The paths of South Korea and Japan should be characterized by cooperation, development, peaceful investment, and infrastructure connections, transforming the Russian Far East into a new space for collaboration in energy, logistics, agriculture, and climate industries rather than a battleground.
Europe is also watching the rise of East Asia with keen interest. The manufacturing-centered European economy, led by Germany and France, is losing growth momentum amid energy crises, industrial hollowing, and aging populations. In contrast, despite limited resources and declining populations, South Korea and Japan maintain world-class competitiveness in AI, semiconductors, automobiles, batteries, shipbuilding, and cultural industries.
While Europe possesses the strength of norms and institutions, its production and speed capabilities are weakening. South Korea and Japan have the strength of production and speed, but they still lack a larger civilizational vision and joint market strategy. This is where the future of Korea-Japan cooperation becomes crucial. By joining forces, the two countries could create a new model that combines European-style institutions, American-style innovation, and Asian manufacturing capabilities.
In terms of culture and the arts, Korea-Japan cooperation could have a global impact. The combination of South Korea's K-pop, dramas, films, beauty, and food culture with Japan's animation, gaming, literature, design, and craftsmanship could form the most powerful cultural block for the global youth generation. Culture is no longer a secondary industry; it is a national brand, tourism, consumption, diplomacy, and a force that moves the emotions of people worldwide.
Sports can play a similar role. Youth exchanges in soccer, baseball, e-sports leagues, and university sports can become direct pathways to change the emotions of future generations. A handshake and joint training between young athletes can achieve what diplomats have struggled to accomplish for decades. When the younger generation accepts each other as both competitors and friends, history can finally move forward.
Of course, many barriers remain in the Korea-Japan relationship. Historical conflicts over forced labor, comfort women, and the Dokdo issue have not been fully resolved. Anti-Japanese and anti-Korean sentiments still exist within both countries. These issues should not be taken lightly or ignored. Wounds must be acknowledged, and memories respected. However, remembering history and giving up on the future are entirely different matters. Wisdom is needed to remember the past without being trapped by it.
South Korea and Japan must now learn the spirit of 'seeking common ground while preserving differences.' They should understand each other's historical wounds while finding a path for future generations to coexist. As expressed in Chinese classics, this is a time that requires wisdom to pursue commonalities while acknowledging differences.
In the future, Korea-Japan cooperation should expand beyond mere diplomatic engagements to become a community in everyday life. Businesses should connect supply chains and technologies, universities should connect youth and knowledge, and local governments should connect tourism and culture.
The media should not only highlight conflicts but also showcase the structures of cooperation and future possibilities. Above all, it is crucial for the citizens of both countries to recognize each other not as adversaries but as partners in building a shared future. While governments can open the way, it is the citizens who must walk that path. Politics opens doors, economics paves the way, culture connects hearts, and youth completes the future.
The center of global hegemony is now shifting from the West to the East. The Atlantic era that dominated the world since the 18th century is fading, giving way to the Pacific and East Asian era. In this monumental flow, South Korea and Japan can no longer remain anchored in the past.
The recent Korea-Japan summit held in Andong is not just a diplomatic event; it may signal a quiet yet significant directional shift toward the future of East Asia.
History sometimes opens a new era not through war but through cooperation. The Korea-Japan collaboration beginning in the Far East may very well be the starting point of a new world order in the 21st century.
When South Korea and Japan unite, they can become harbingers of global peace and prosperity.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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