Park stresses future, MPs focus on past
South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Monday called for a “future-oriented” relationship with Japan, even as a group of Seoul lawmakers dredged up a long-running territorial dispute by visiting some islets also claimed by Tokyo.
The visit by 10 lawmakers to the South Korean-controlled islets, known as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan, in the East Sea (Sea of Japan) drew an angry response from the Japanese government which called the trip “extremely regrettable”.
The row over the islets is one of a number of bitter disputes that have tainted relations between Seoul and Tokyo for decades.
But both countries managed to turn a major corner in Decemberwhentheyreached a “final and irreversible” agreement on one of the most emotive issues — the so-called comfort women forced to work in Japanese wartime brothels.
In a speech to mark the 71st anniversary of the end of Japanese colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula, Park stressed the need to look forward.
“We should newly define relations with Japan to forge future-oriented ties,” Park said in her televised address.
Herremarkscoincidedwith the lawmakers’ visit to the islets where they met South Korean security personnel.
A surprise trip to the dispute islets in 2012 by thenSouth Korean president Lee Myung-bak had triggered a spike in tensions with Japan, and Monday’s visit was also sharply criticized by Tokyo.
“We absolutely cannot accept this,” said Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.
“It is extremely regrettable that they went ahead with the visit despite our protest beforehand and calls for cancellation of the visit,” Suga said.
But one of the South Korean lawmakers, Na Kyungwon, said Tokyo’s anger was misplaced.
“This is part of our job ... visiting our territory, and Japan’s overreaction is incomprehensible,” Na said.
The Aug 15 anniversary of Japan’s defeat in World War II was also marked in Tokyo, where Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual donation to the notorious Yasukuni Shrine.
The shrine honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals among 2.5 million Japanese war dead from the World War II, is regarded as a symbol of the past Japanese militarism.
South Korea expressed deep regret on Monday after dozens of Japanese lawmakers visited a shrine for war dead.
“(We) express deep concern and regret that responsible political leaders ... are again paying tribute to the Yasukuni Shrine that glorifies the history of the war of aggression,” South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.