If there’s one thing to say about President Trump’s trip to Asia, it’s that the excursion was relatively subdued. With the exception of one tweet and a not-unexpected display of chumminess with Filipino president Rodrigo Duterte, Trump didn’t commit any major gaffes or blunder into any events of elevated consequence. And in many ways, that was the entire point.

As commentators have repeatedly reminded us, Trump was visiting Asia to reassure the region he isn’t a total loose cannon. With North Korea engaging in increasingly provocative actions, the narrative goes, it is important that Trump ease international fears about his temperament and work to align rather than divide the regional actors currently embroiled in nuclear drama — particularly US allies like Japan and South Korea.

But festering under the placid surface of Trump’s visit are serious fractures. Despite a veneer of unity, the Japanese and South Korean governments have divergent interests and major disagreements about how to deal with the North Korean dilemma. Both have a sizable influence on US policy toward the DPRK. And while South Korea’s position is at least worthy of critical support, Japan is taking an approach that is at best unhelpful — and may even be increasing the risk of war.