Chung Mong-joon calls for ‘close cooperation’ between Korea, Japan at policy dialogue in Tokyo

Chung Mong-joon, founder and honorary chairman of the Seoul-based Asan Institute for Policy Studies, speaks during the 2025 Korea-Japan Policy Dialogue held in Tokyo on Oct. 15. [ASAN INSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES]

 
Chung Mong-joon, founder and honorary chairman of the Seoul-based Asan Institute for Policy Studies, on Wednesday likened Korea-Japan relations to a “half-filled cup,” calling on Tokyo to “make an effort to fill the rest.”
 
Speaking at the 2025 Korea-Japan Policy Dialogue in Tokyo, Chung emphasized the need for “close cooperation” between the two countries amid rapidly changing regional security conditions.
 
 
“According to Professor Lee Chong-sik of the University of Pennsylvania, an estimated 200,000 women were forced into sexual slavery, 2 million people were subjected to forced labor and 200,000 were conscripted into the Japanese military during Japan’s colonial rule,” Chung said during his opening speech.  
 
“For Korea-Japan relations to truly move forward, Japan must make a more genuine and heartfelt effort to fill the remaining half of the cup.”
 
Chung, whose English name is MJ Chung, is the major shareholder of HD Hyundai, which focuses on shipbuilding and energy. He entered politics in 1988 and served seven consecutive terms in the National Assembly.   
 
The 2025 Korea-Japan Policy Dialogue, co-hosted by Seoul’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies and Tokyo’s Asian Pacific Initiative, was held under the theme “Sixty Years of Korea-Japan Relations: Reflections and Prospects,” and brought together key figures from both countries.
 
From Japan, former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida took part, while Korea was represented by officials, including Ambassador to Japan Lee Hyuk and former Ambassador Yun Duk-min.
 
Participants exchanged in-depth views on issues such as trilateral cooperation among South Korea, Japan and the United States in response to North Korea’s nuclear threat, as well as challenges and opportunities for South Korea and Japan’s cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]