South Korea, Japan seek fresh start
SOUTH KOREA: South Korean President-elect Park Geun-Hye met Friday
with the envoy of Japan’s new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as Seoul and
Tokyo sought a new start to a relationship dogged by bitter historical
disputes.
“As new governments take office in both countries, I hope they will
make efforts in various fields to build confidence... and close
friendship,” Park said as she met with former Japanese finance minister
Fukushiro Nukaga.
Nukaga had brought a letter from Abe who spoke of South Korea as
Japan’s “most important neighbour” and pledged his commitment to
improving ties.
“As both Japan and South Korea have new governments, I would like to
play the role of mediator so that this year can be a good one,” Nukaga
had said in Tokyo before flying to Seoul.
“Prime Minister Abe believes that Japan-South Korea relations need to
be solid for the stability of East Asia,” he said.
As well as meeting Park, Nukaga held separate talks in Seoul with
South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-Hwan. Relations between the two
countries have regularly been strained by a territorial dispute and
other issues of contention arising from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule
over the Korean peninsula.
The territorial row deteriorated last year following a surprise visit
by South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak to the disputed Dokdo islands,
known by Japan as Takeshima.
It quickly degenerated into a familiar confrontation over attitudes
to shared history, with Seoul accusing its former colonial ruler Tokyo
of not being contrite enough for its wartime behaviour.
AFP |