The Japanese government will, as in previous years, send a Vice Minister-level official to the so-called Takeshima (Dokdo) Day ceremony on the 22nd. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who had previously raised her voice that a Minister-level official should be dispatched, reversed her own remarks and stepped back to maintain the existing practice. It is seen as a diplomatic move to minimize backlash from the Korean government and manage the recently warming bilateral relationship in a stable way.
Jiro Akama, minister in charge of territorial issues, held a news conference in Tokyo on the morning of the 20th and officially announced that he will not attend the upcoming Takeshima Day ceremony. Instead, he said Parliamentary Secretary Naoki Furukawa from the Cabinet Office will be dispatched to the event in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture. A parliamentary secretary is equivalent to a Vice Minister in Korea's bureaucratic system.
With this, the Japanese government will have sent a parliamentary secretary to the event for the 14th straight year, from 2013 during the second Shinzo Abe Cabinet to this year. Hard-line conservatives in Japan have consistently insisted that Dokdo is Japan's inherent territory and that a Minister-level official, the head of a central government ministry, should attend the ceremony in person.
Prime Minister Takaichi is a representative right-wing politician who claims to be the political successor to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Before taking office, Prime Minister Takaichi also stressed multiple times in public forums such as party leadership debates that it is right for the responsible Minister to attend the Takeshima Day ceremony with confidence. During the ruling Liberal Democratic Party leadership election in September last year, Takaichi bluntly argued that there was no need to worry about opposition from the Korean side.
However, once taking the top job of running state affairs, the stance changed. Unlike during the candidacy, when the goal was to rally the conservative base, as prime minister, where diplomatic repercussions with neighboring countries and the national interest must be considered comprehensively, Takaichi is seen to have made a realistic choice. The Takaichi Cabinet's approval rating is currently in the 63% range and sailing steadily. With solid support, it is likely she judged there was no need to provoke unnecessary diplomatic friction. Akama also drew a line, saying the decision to maintain the current level of dispatch was the result of careful consideration within the Japanese government.
Major outlets, citing experts, interpreted that the trust painstakingly built by the two countries' leaders appears to have decisively influenced this decision. Shortly after taking office, Prime Minister Takaichi met President Lee Jae-myung and pledged to develop a future-oriented relationship. The two leaders agreed to gradually untangle the knot of historical issues and expand cooperation in various fields, including the economy and security.
In particular, in January, the president made a surprise visit to Nara Prefecture, Prime Minister Takaichi's political home base. At the time, Prime Minister Takaichi invited the president directly and accompanied the schedule. As scenes of the two leaders playing drums side by side and mingling informally unfolded, positive reviews emerged that a strong bond had formed between them. In this friendly atmosphere, Prime Minister Takaichi is analyzed to have judged there was no reason to pour cold water on relations by forcibly sending a Minister-level official.
Kyodo News reported, "Given the improving trend in relations between the two countries, the Japanese government appears to have taken into account the Korean side, which strongly opposes the holding of the Takeshima Day ceremony." Jiji Press also assessed, "The Takaichi administration has decided, as in previous years, to have a Cabinet Office parliamentary secretary attend," calling it "a measure to avoid throwing cold water on Japan-Korea relations that are on an improving track." Leading local outlets agree that the Japanese government deliberately calibrated the level to avoid a deterioration in relations with Korea.
Takeshima Day is a commemorative day unilaterally designated by the local government of Shimane Prefecture, not the central Japanese government. On Feb. 22, 1905, Shimane Prefecture issued a notice unilaterally incorporating Dokdo into its administrative district. Marking the 100th anniversary of the incorporation, it enacted a related local government ordinance in 2005, fixed Feb. 22 as Takeshima Day, and has held large-scale commemorative events since 2006.
The Korean government has lodged strong protests every year against Japan's unwavering, baseless sovereignty claims over Dokdo. In particular, it has expressed deep regret and urged the immediate withdrawal of dispatches over the practice of sending a central government official, a parliamentary secretary, to a local government event to buttress unfounded claims. As Japan is pressing ahead again this year with the dispatch of a parliamentary secretary, Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is expected to summon an official from the Japanese Embassy in Seoul to deliver a firm protest.