As the wisteria blossoms in late spring, the temperature is also warming with regard to ROK-Japan ties. This weekend’s visit of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to South Korea, the first by a Japanese prime minister in over five years, marks a significant step in this warming. But it remains uncertain whether this progress will extend into a golden summer or if old disputes will dampen the enthusiasm on both sides, leading to a tense atmosphere once more.

On the surface, the signs are good. In early March, President Yoon Suk-yeol announced a breakthrough plan to compensate Korean victims of forced labor during the Japanese colonial period. Kishida expressed support for the initiative, and the U.S. described it as “historic.” Subsequently, Yoon made a carefully choreographed visit to Tokyo — the first visit by a South Korean president to Japan in around a decade for a bilateral summit — which Kishida is about to reciprocate.