The Liberty Korea Party is fiercely struggling to fight off a "Japan-friendly" image. But internally, the party seems concerned of being caught in a framework of Japan-friendly versus anti-Japan, even as they oppose the ruling party's accusations of leaning toward Japan. If the party criticizes the ruling party's hardline stance against Japan, they could be labeled as being Japan-friendly, but at the same time, the party is not in a position to unconditionally approve of the government's response.

At a meeting of the party's Supreme Council this day, Liberty Korea Party leader Hwang Kyo-ahn said, "Is it right to label anyone as pro-Japanese just because they might have slightly different views with Cheong Wa Dae? Even if the entire nation came together to respond to the issue, the problem would still be difficult to solve. But does dividing sides as pro- and anti-Japan contribute to the resolution of the situation?"

The party's floor leader Na Kyung-won also said, "The government spent two years 'selling North Korea' and now it is trying to cover up its incompetence and irresponsible attitude by 'selling Japan.'" She further argued, "Japan suffered a long time from a slow growing economy. Isn't the (Moon Jae-in) government, which is leading the Republic of Korea onto the path that Japan treaded on, a neo-Japan-friendly group?"

However, some voices raise concerns that such a response is actually what is dragging the party into the "Japan-friendly framework." In particular, to respond to Japan's trade retaliation, the supplementary budget is urgent, but the Liberty Korea Party is blocking the budget at the National Assembly, and such criticism is becoming a burden on the party. One senior lawmaker said, "We are saying that we should look at the situation from a level-headed perspective, but they accuse us of being Japan-friendly. Since anyone who opposes the government ends up being labeled pro-Japan, we are in a disadvantageous position when it comes to public opinion. It is difficult to even mention the topic."

The ruling party is actively taking advantage of this framework to pressure the Liberty Korea Party. Lee In-young, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea said in a meeting of the party's Supreme Council at the National Assembly this day, "The Liberty Korea Party should carefully reflect on their words and actions and realize why the people are criticizing them for being the ‘X’ man (a member of the team who secretly works to help the opponent win) for Japan." In a press conference the previous day, he referred to the Liberty Korea Party as a "neo-Japan-friendly" group.

The situation is not in the Liberty Korea Party's favor. According to a survey of 1,505 adults nationwide by Realmeter, which was conducted on July 15-19 with results released this day (confidence level 95% with a ±2.0% margin of error), the Liberty Korea Party's approval rating dropped 3.2% to 27.1%. The approval rating dropped to the level just before the February 27 party convention, when Hwang Kyo-ahn was elected party leader, according to a survey conducted by the same firm.

Meanwhile, the approval rating for President Moon Jae-in's handling of state affairs rose 4.0% from last week to 51.8%. According to an analysis by Realmeter, the ruling party's strong response against Japan resulted in gathering support.

Details of the survey can be found on the Realmeter website or on the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.