The 2024 Rim of the Pacific (Rimpac) military exercises, currently taking place off the coast of Hawaii, have brought Japan and South Korea into a collaborative environment that some analysts suggest could signal a shift in their bilateral defense relationship. As the world’s largest maritime exercise, Rimpac involves 30 nations, 30,000 troops, and a significant array of naval assets, including submarines and aircraft carriers.

While the primary purpose of the exercise is international maritime security, the prominent roles played by both Japan and South Korea have drawn attention to their historical diplomatic tensions. The two nations have long struggled to reconcile differences stemming from their shared history, which has historically complicated trilateral security efforts involving the United States. Observers are now questioning whether the operational necessity of these large-scale drills might provide a framework for the two neighbors to set aside past grievances and deepen their defense ties. The exercises, which began on June 24, serve as a platform for testing interoperability between diverse international forces, with the US acting as the primary coordinator. Whether this cooperation will extend beyond the scope of the Rimpac exercises into a more permanent bilateral security arrangement remains a subject of ongoing speculation among regional experts.