President Lee met with Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru to strengthen bilateral relations in various areas. It was the first by a South Korean leader to visit Japan before going to the U.S., signifying a potential pivotal step toward more forward…
South Korea celebrated its 80th Liberation Day, featuring cultural performances that commemorate independence fighters. President Lee also had his inauguration that sparked criticism that his event may overshadow historical commemoration of the event. His message on building better relationship with…
South Korea has shown strong discomfort about Japan’s failure to acknowledge Korean forced labor on Hashima Island. South Korea accused Japan for breaking its pledge to fully acknowledge and memorialize suffering in brutal working condition. This issue highlights ongoing tension…
Hiroshima’s Vice Governor Yokota Mika meets with the South Korean Hibakusha and their descendants to learn about their experiences by visiting memorials and hear their concerns on lack of recognition. With 10~20% of Hibakusha being Korean, they are being excluded…
Newly elected South Korean President Lee Jae-myung emphasized cooperation with Japan, although having harsh rhetoric on historical issue. The President stated that the country’s relationship with Japan is inseparable, where a deeper collaboration will benefit both South Korea and Japan…
Japan posted Sado Mine for UNESCO World Heritage without clearly apologizing or labeling Koreans as “forced laborers”. This action caused rising diplomatic tensions with South Korea on historical reconciliation with South Korea boycotting Japan’s first memorial event for victims. Yonhap…
Japan’s Gunma Prefecture has removed Korean forced labor memorial due to criticism over alleged political use. People argue that this decision can set a dangerous precedent for erasing painful historical truth and being a signal as a retreat from reconciliation…
South Korea’s Supreme Court ordered Japanese corporation to directly compensate Korean forced labor victims, while Japan formally protested. President Yoon stated it will use domestic third-party funds to facilitate reparation as a part of restoring relations with Japan. Hankyoreh Article:…
New school textbook in Japan have replaced terms like “forcibly mobilized” with “participated” and reaffirmed Japanese sovereignty over Dokdo. This changes symbolize right wing political pressure, which downplayed Japanese military’s role in mass suicides and comfort women that betrayed South…
South Korea and Japan restored diplomatic channels between both countries’ leaders since its closure 12 years ago. While the meeting bolstered stronger cooperation, historical issues like comfort women or militaristic issues like 2018 radar lock-on incident still hinder further ties.…
The Mainichi: S. Korea foreign minister meets Japan wartime labor plaintiffs The Korea Herald: Foreign Minister to meet with victims of Japan’s forced labor The Korea Times: Foreign minister vows diplomatic solution to forced labor dispute with Japan
The Asahi Shimbun: Yoon restates his will to mend ties with Japan on Liberation Day Nikkei Asia: South Korea’s Yoon vows to ‘swiftly’ improve Japan ties The Korea Herald: Yoon says dialogue with NK needed, but should not be political…
Kyodo News: South Korea ruling party presidential candidate ready for talks with Japan The Korea Herald: [Election 2022] How do Lee and Yoon view Japan?
Kyodo News: Japan to seek listing of Sado mine site as world heritage The Korea Herald (Derived from Yonhap News): S. Korea voices ‘strong regret’ over Japan’s Sado mine heritage push ABC (Derived from Associated Press): Japan to push controversial…
The Asahi Shimbun: Seoul blasts bid for Sado gold mine to go on heritage list The Japan News (By the Yomiuri Shimbun): Controversial Sado mine proposed for UNESCO nod The Korea Times: Brazen-faced move (Opinion Piece) Korea JoongAng Daily: Another…
“Lee Hak-rae’s decades-long battle for redress and compensation ended in vain. His life story raises serious questions about justice and good sense in this nation”
The last Korean to be convicted of war crimes after serving in the Japanese military during World War II has died without receiving the apology and compensation he insisted Tokyo owed him for his suffering. Lee Hak-rae, 96, died on Sunday.
South Korea’s Moon Calls for Japan Talks, Separation of Historical Disputes from Future Ties (SCMP) Japanese Media: Moon’s Speech Lacks concrete Proposals for Bilateral Cooperation (Dong-A Ilbo) EDITORIAL: Decisive action needed to resolve Tokyo-Seoul history dispute (Asahi Shimbun) Moon: South…
Forced Labor: The Japan Times: South Korean leader says Seoul ‘always ready to sit down’ with Tokyo Dong-A Ilbo: “Japanese media: Moon’s speech lacks concrete proposals for bilateral cooperation” Asahi Shimbun: “Moon: South Korea, Japan must look to future to…
Kyodo News: An annual ceremony was held in western Japan on Monday to push the country’s claim to Takeshima, a group of islets controlled by South Korea, but on a smaller scale due to the coronavirus pandemic. AP: Japan renewed its…
“A record 40.4 pct of Japanese do not believe that their country’s relationship with South Korea is important, apparently reflecting bilateral conflicts over history issues, a Cabinet Office survey showed Friday.”
Dong-A Ilbo: “South Korea has proposed to the leaders of East Asia that we all work closely to ensure high levels of quarantine and security during the two upcoming Olympic games in 2021, Tokyo, and in 2022, Beijing,” said South…
Kyodo News: “South Korean President Moon Jae In wants to mend relations with Japan that have been frayed by a dispute over wartime labor, Seoul’s spy chief told Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Tuesday.” Chosun Ilbo: “National Intelligence Service…