Japan Mulls Evacuation of Citizens From South Korea Amid War Concerns

60,000 Japanese Believed to Be in South Korea

Japan’s National Security Council is reportedly drawing up plans for a possible full evacuation of its citizens from South Korea, according to officials familiar with the situation, amid growing concerns that a war on he Korean Peninsula could be imminent.

Over the past weeks, US rhetoric about “solving” the North Korea crisis, along with the North Korean government’s threats of nuclear retaliation, have raised concerns that such fighting could break out at any moment. North Korea’s massive artillery and rocket arsenal would be turned against South Korea is such a war, with devastating results.

Important trade ties between the nations means Japan has some 60,000 citizens in South Korea at the moment, and is preparing to try to quickly get them out of harm’s way, or at least as out of harm’s way as Japan, which would presumably also be targeted in a US-North Korea War, would be.

The National Security Council also reportedly talked of the need to draw up plans for what to do if, in the event of war, Japan was suddenly faced with an influx of North Korean refugees. Reports say the officials are loathe to do anything publicly, for fear of causing panic.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.