Congratulations to Kevin Kim for being officially appointed the interim US ambassador to South Korea:

Kevin Kim, a senior official at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, has been appointed as chargé d’affaires ad interim at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, the embassy announced Monday on its official website.

According to the statement posted on the embassy’s site, Kim “will work with the Embassy team and the Republic of Korea government to advance our mutual interest and shared values, as well as our ironclad commitment to the U.S.-ROK Alliance.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Japan’s new Prime Minister definitely has an opportunity to impress President Trump this week since she is protege of his good friend Shinzo Abe who was assassinated three years ago:

U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in Tokyo on Monday, meeting with Emperor Naruhito in the evening ahead of a bilateral summit the following day with new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi that will focus on trade, investment and defense spending.

Trump arrived at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport a day after announcing a handful of deals with Southeast Asian nations during a regional summit in Malaysia, part of a whirlwind tour of Asia.

Greeted on the tarmac by U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass and Japan’s top government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara, the U.S. president’s arrival came as some 18,000 police officershave been mobilized, following a string of high-profile attacks at home and abroad targeting political figures.

While a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping later this week in South Korea has been the focus of headlines, his meeting with Takaichi, who took office less than a week ago, will be a crucial test of her diplomatic chops.

Takaichi, a protege of slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will be seeking to build a solid relationship with Trump as she looks to navigate increasing pressure from the U.S. on trade and defense issues.

Speaking aboard Air Force One while en route to Tokyo on Monday, Trump said he looked forward to meeting Takaichi.

“I hear phenomenal things,” he said. “She was a great ally and friend of Shinzo Abe, who was my friend. … He was one of my best. … And I know they were very close, and I think philosophically they were close, which is good. It’s going to be very good. That really helps Japan and the United States.”

Shortly after touching down at sunset, Trump took a helicopter to central Tokyo for his meeting with Emperor Naruhito. The U.S. president was the first foreign leader to meet the emperor — whose role is purely symbolic — after he ascended to the throne in 2019.

Japan Times

You can read more at the link.

I doubt this will happen, but it doesn’t hurt to speak respectfully of Kim to not give any reason for a provocation during the summit:

 U.S. President Donald Trump has said he is open to meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his upcoming visit to South Korea next week if Kim would like to meet, in a renewed show of his willingness to resume diplomacy with the reclusive leader.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.

It appears Japan’s new Prime Minister seems eager to build positives ties with South Korea:

Sanae Takaichi (64 years old), president of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was inaugurated as the 104th prime minister on the 21st, following former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. She is the first female prime minister in the 140-year history of Japan’s parliamentary cabinet system.

In the first round of voting in the House of Representatives (lower house) prime minister nomination election held at the extraordinary session of the National Diet that day, Takaichi secured 237 votes, more than half, and was elected prime minister. Although Komeito, which had cooperated with the LDP for 26 years, withdrew from the coalition government, causing a temporary crisis, Takaichi managed to bring the conservative opposition party Japan Restoration Party on board as a new coalition partner and ascended to the prime ministership.

The launch of the Takaichi administration, known for its hardline right-wing stance, has drawn attention to the future direction of future-oriented South Korea-Japan relations established under the previous Ishiba administration. Takaichi has made strong statements on past historical and territorial issues and has regularly visited the Yasukuni Shrine.

However, there are observations that “Prime Minister Takaichi” might be different. At her inauguration press conference that day, she stated, “South Korea is an important neighboring country to Japan,” and added, “The importance of South Korea-Japan relations, a crucial partnership, is growing even more. I hope to hold talks with President Lee Jae-myung and communicate properly.” Takaichi is scheduled to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju late this month and meet President Lee Jae-myung for the first time. President Lee also posted a congratulatory message on social media regarding Takaichi’s election as prime minister that day, writing, “I look forward to having constructive discussions in Gyeongju.”

Chosun Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but odds are we will see how strong this relationship is when President Lee has a domestic political issue and he uses a anti-Japanese issue to deflect attention from it.

This is possibly being done in case North Korea tries to conduct some kind of provocation during the upcoming APEC summit that President Trump will be attending this month in South Korea:

South Korea has paused official tours of the Joint Security Area — a site shared with the North in the Demilitarized Zone — ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned visit to the Korean Peninsula. Tours of the JSA — already limited to military officials, distinguished visitors and media — will be suspended from the end of October through early November, Ministry of Unification spokesperson Koo Byongsam said Monday at a news conference. Koo said the ministry has “no specific information to disclose” about the decision and referred additional questions to United Nations Command, which oversees security and tours for the area.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but I would be very surprised if North Korea launches a provocation considering how President Trump has remained on good terms with Kim Jong-un.