Half a century ago, ping-pong facilitated the rapprochement between the United States and China. Football could today accompany that of Japan and North Korea. The women’s teams from the two countries were due to compete Wednesday, February 28, evening, in Tokyo, for a place at the Paris Olympic Games. In the first leg, played in Saudi Arabia at the request of North Korea, the two teams drew 1-1.
Beyond the sporting issue, the contacts established during these meetings echo rumors of bilateral exchanges, in Beijing in particular, with a view to a summit between the Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, and the North Korean leader. , Kim Jong-un.
On January 5, the latter sent his condolences to the victims of the New Year earthquake in the Noto peninsula (center). Message appreciated in Tokyo. On February 16, his sister, Kim Yo-jong, made public a ” personal opinion “ according to which if Japan decided to open “a new era to repair relationships, through courteous behavior and breaking with anachronistic hostility”the two countries “could envision a common future”.
Do not waste time “
Meanwhile, Mr. Kishida said on February 5 that he was “extremely important for [lui] to take the initiative to establish links at the highest level” with Pyongyang and that Japan should not “don’t waste time”.
Seoul and Washington would not be opposed to a Japan-North Korea summit even if, notes Wang Son-taek of the Hanpyeong Peace Institute (South Korea), “these contacts could crack cooperation and solidarity between the three countries on North Korea”.
There have already been Japanese-North Korean summits in early 2002, when Junichiro Koizumi, prime minister from 2001 to 2006, met Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un’s father. The sticking point, however, remains the question of the seventeen Japanese kidnapped in the 1970s and 1980s by North Korean agents. Mr. Koizumi was able to repatriate five in 2002, but Tokyo maintains that no lifting of Japanese sanctions can be decided without the return of the twelve others. Pyongyang, for its part, affirms that this file is closed.
But even on this issue, Tokyo could compromise. Mr. Kishida today says he is ready for talks with Mr. Kim “without any conditions”. Long supporters of a firm line, the families of the kidnapped also seem to rally around dialogue.
It is difficult to anticipate an upcoming meeting but Japan and North Korea must face each other again on the football fields as part of qualifying for the World Cup. The outward journey is planned for Tokyo on March 21 and the return on March 26. In Pyongyang?