Japan and South Korea agree on measures to prevent further radar incidents｜Arab News Japan

SINGAPORE: Japanese Defense Minister KIHARA Minoru and his South Korean counterpart Shin Won-sik agreed on Saturday on measures to prevent a repeat of a 2018 incident in which a South Korean warship aimed its fire-control radar at a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force aircraft.

At their meeting in Singapore, Kihara and Shin also agreed to expand dialogue between the defense agencies of both countries, including resuming exchanges between their uniformed officers, to normalize relations between the two sides.

Preventive measures include strict adherence to the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, a multilateral code of conduct for naval ships and aircraft.

In the meantime, both sides did not elaborate on what actually happened in the 2018 incident, effectively putting the matter on hold.

After the radar incident in December 2018, when former South Korean President Moon Jae-in was in office, the Japanese side demanded an apology and preventive measures from the South Korean side. However, the South Korean side refused to admit that a South Korean warship had aimed its radar at an MSDF aircraft, claiming that the MSDF aircraft was flying at a low altitude to threaten the South Korean ship.

“We have worked out preventive measures related to the radar guidance issue, which has been an open issue for a long time,” Kihara told reporters after meeting with Shin. “We will now revive defense cooperation and exchanges between Japan and South Korea.”

Kihara added that the Japanese side had not changed its position on the facts of the incident. Meanwhile, South Korean news agency Yonhap quoted Shin as saying that the safety of South Korean ships was guaranteed.

In a joint press statement that day, the Japanese and South Korean ministers said they agreed on the importance of promoting mutual understanding and ensuring smooth communication.

The ministers vowed to strengthen security cooperation between Japan and South Korea, as well as between the two countries and the United States, based on the outcome of their meeting on Saturday.

To facilitate dialogue between their defense agencies, Japan and South Korea will hold annual vice-minister-level talks, resume working-level defense talks and resume high-level exchanges between the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the South Korean military, the statement said.

JIJI Press