Preposterous remarks from Lee Jae-myung

In a stunning development, Democratic Party (DP) Chairman Lee Jae-myung branded the joint South Korea-U.S.-Japan drill in the East Sea as an “extremely pro-Japanese act and pro-Japanese national defense.” In a Supreme Council meeting on Friday, Lee said that an attempt to draw Japan to a joint military exercise when Tokyo endlessly attempts to claim the Dokdo islets can be interpreted as Korea’s acceptance of the Self-Defense Forces as a “normal military” of Japan.

But the joint drill on the East Sea is nothing new. Starting with a joint search and rescue operation in 2011, the three countries conducted a joint missile detection-and-tracing drill in June 2016. At the height of North Korea’s missile provocation in July 2017, the leaders of the three countries vowed to escalate their security and military cooperation to the highest level. Three months after the pledge, they overtly conducted a joint exercise using their warships equipped with the Aegis Combat System to effectively counter the North’s unceasing missile provocation. The latest drill at sea was conducted based on the Oct. 23, 2017 agreement among the defense ministers of the three countries during the Moon Jae-in administration.

The current missile crisis cannot be compared to 2017. Following uninterrupted missile firings over the past two weeks, North Korea again launched two missiles to the East Sea on Sunday, a day before the 77th anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party. Last Tuesday, North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan into the Pacific. The North can take a cue from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s threat to use tactical nukes against Ukraine.

Given the significance of Japan as a rear base for the USFK and UN Combined Forces, such a drill is a must. The sharing of the need for security cooperation by President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida by phone last week shows the gravity of the situation.

Despite the Yoon administration’s same approach as the Moon administration, the DP head stigmatized the joint drill as being “extremely pro-Japanese.” We wonder how he would define the Moon administration’s move five years ago?

It does not make sense for Lee to demand an apology and a promise not to repeat it from the government. Everyone knows the North’s mounting fear about the joint drill at sea. Who will benefit if the three countries stop the exercise? National security should be based on a keen sense of international reality. But unfortunately, Lee is still stuck in the anti-Japan frame loved by the DP. If the DP takes such an incomprehensible approach, it only damages our national security.