South Korea and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula on Sunday and agreed to resume joint humanitarian search-and-rescue exercises as the two countries strengthened defence cooperation.
The agreement was reached during the sixth round of defence talks in Seoul between South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back and Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, Reuters reported.
The meeting marks the latest effort by Seoul and Tokyo to deepen security and economic ties despite longstanding historical disputes. The two countries have worked to strengthen cooperation since 2022 with support from the United States while addressing North Korea's nuclear programme and its expanding military ties with Russia, according to Reuters.
Ministers reaffirm security cooperation
The two ministers agreed to continue working together to maintain regional peace and stability through bilateral cooperation and their respective alliances with Washington, Reuters reported.
According to a statement from South Korea's defence ministry, "both ministers shared the view to continue cooperation for maintaining regional peace and stability amid a grave security environment."
South Korea and Japan have sought to improve ties since 2022 despite tensions stemming from Japan's colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, Reuters reported.
In 2019, Seoul terminated the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) after Tokyo restricted exports of semiconductor materials and removed South Korea from its list of preferred trading partners, according to Reuters.
Reuters reported that President Lee Jae Myung and Japan's then prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, agreed in 2025 to strengthen economic and security ties. The report added that defence officials from both countries also pledged to work with Washington to counter North Korea's nuclear threat and its expanding military cooperation with Russia through annual trilateral exercises and cooperation on artificial intelligence and unmanned systems.
In January 2026, Lee and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi agreed to strengthen shuttle diplomacy, Reuters reported. The two countries expanded energy cooperation in May.
Countries to expand defence coordination
Ahn and Koizumi also agreed to continue exchanges between Japan's Blue Impulse and South Korea's Black Eagles aerobatic teams to improve humanitarian search-and-rescue exercises for maritime disaster scenarios, Reuters reported.
The two ministers previously met in Japan in January and again in May at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, where they discussed a possible military logistics support pact covering ammunition, fuel and food supplies, according to Reuters.
Reuters also reported that the two countries agreed to conduct their first joint humanitarian search-and-rescue exercise in nearly 10 years in June.
Historical issues continue to weigh on bilateral ties, including the issue of Korean women who were forced to work in Japanese military brothels during World War Two, Reuters reported.
In February, Seoul protested after the Japanese government held a ceremony marking disputed islands known as Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in South Korea, which are administered by South Korea, according to Reuters.
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