South Korea and Japan Should Just Move On

The U.S.-China "trade war" gets all the headlines, but there's budding conflict between two of the world's most important economies and American allies. South Korea's resentments over its Japanese colonization from 1905 to 1945 had gradually subsided over time--though Japan's whitewashing of its World War II history remains a sore point--but exploded anew over policy toward North Korea.

South Korean business owners trash
Japanese logos. (Ahn Young-Joon--AP)

The new face-off in the conflict between the two U.S. allies started July 1 when Japan slapped export restrictions on South Korea, the latest move in a long-running feud between the governments of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Moon Jae-in over World War II history. The new curbs slow shipments of three materials essential for semiconductors and flexible displays, two drivers of Seoul’s export-heavy economy.

Tokyo officials have suggested the moves are justified for national-security reasons, accusing South Korean of not doing enough to ensure Japanese-produced chemicals and equipment can’t be shipped on to help rogue nations build weapons. One of Mr. Abe’s closest aides named North Korea as a possible destination.

Seoul has denied the suggestion. North Korea slammed Japan’s trade policy in a state-media report Thursday. “This is a cunning artifice to justify the unreasonable economic retaliation by disguising it as an ‘issue related to national security,’ ” the North’s state media said of Japan’s export restrictions.

Relations are souring but haven't reached the point where the U.S. will step in:

The U.S. has kept relatively quiet on the matter. But on a visit to Seoul on Wednesday, David Stilwell, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asian affairs, said Washington would “do what it can” to help patch up the frayed relationship between its two allies.

From the American vantage point South Korea and Japan's differences are minor compared to their common geopolitical interests. Just like Americans do with ancient grievances, both parties should look past the sins that no one alive is responsible for and move on.