South Korea’s main opposition party, the Democratic Party, has filed an impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk-yeol, citing his foreign policy—which they claim antagonizes North Korea, China, and Russia while favoring Japan—as a key reason. However, U.S. foreign policy and security experts have dismissed these grounds as baseless.
Former U.S. Ambassador to S. Korea Harry Harris, speaking to Voice of America (VOA) on Dec. 9, emphasized the significance of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s diplomatic efforts with Japan. He noted that Japan values strong and positive ties with S. Korea and expressed hope that S. Korea would also recognize the importance of maintaining such relations.
The impeachment motion, filed by the Democratic Party of Korea on Dec. 4, accuses President Yoon Suk-yeol of pursuing an unusual foreign policy focused on Japan, which it claims is disguised as so-called “value diplomacy.” The motion argues that Yoon has disrupted geopolitical balance by antagonizing North Korea, China, and Russia, appointing pro-Japan officials to key government positions, isolating S. Korea within Northeast Asia, and increasing the risk of war. It also claims he has neglected national security and failed in his duty to protect the country and its citizens.
Evans Revere, a former U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told Voice of America (VOA) that he found it “disturbing” that the impeachment motion included what he described as one of Yoon’s biggest achievements—restoring trust between S. Korea and Japan and strengthening trilateral cooperation with the United States.
Michael O’Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, criticized the Democratic Party’s claims, saying they were misguided, especially given the recent improvement in S. Korea-Japan-U.S. relations. Kenneth Weinstein, a Japan Chair at Hudson Institute, added that while some might argue for President Yoon’s impeachment based on declaring martial law, the claim that his diplomacy has isolated S. Korea is not true.
The U.S. government also highlighted the importance of cooperation between S. Korea, the United States, and Japan.
On Dec. 9, the State Department announced that Daniel Kritenbrink, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs; Namazu Hiroyuki, Deputy director-general of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Cho Koo-rae, Vice Minister for Strategy and Intelligence at S. Korea’s Foreign Ministry, had met to discuss North Korea.
The meeting reaffirmed the importance of close trilateral collaboration to address shared threats, promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, and reopen dialogue with North Korea, in line with commitments made during the Camp David summit.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, during his visit to Japan, reiterated that America’s extended deterrence commitments to S. Korea and Japan remain unwavering. He also emphasized the goal of advancing historic trilateral cooperation with both nations.
