I am familiar with kernel method, which is defined in the link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel_method
On the other hand I am familiar with variational methods which is defined in the link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variational_principle
It appears to me variational method relates to finding a appropriate function using the variational principle and RKHS is also a technique to find a appropriate function based on a inner product distance.
My question: is there link between them or they are quite different methods?