TOKYO (AP) — South Korean and Japanese leaders will meet later Thursday in Tokyo in a bid to overcome disputes over history and quickly rebuild security and economic ties later, as a North Korean missile launch and encounters between Japanese and Chinese vessels in disputed waters show what’s at stake for the two countries.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida invited South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol for a working visit following South Korea’s announcement of a local fund for Korean victims of wartime forced labor that will pay compensation the South Korean court judgment has demanded from Japanese companies. The two countries hope that it could restart regular bilateral visits, after a gap of more than a decade.
A North Korean missile launch early Thursday just before Yoon departed for Tokyo could increase momentum for he and Kishida to move their countries closer diplomatically. The intercontinental ballistic missile was launched on a steep trajectory to avoid land and fell into open waters off Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido.
Yoon arrived safely hours later for the summit that underscores the two nations' shared sense of urgency to form a united front on North Korea and China with their mutual ally, the United States.
"The peace and stability in the region are important for the region, and we must further strengthen cooperation among allies and like-minded countries,” Kishida said, referring to the missile launch.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Japan at the summit wants to reaffirm cooperation with Seoul and Washington in responses to North Korea's missile threats.
Japan’s invitation for Yoon to visit followed South Korea’s announcement of a local compensation fund for Korean victims of wartime forced labor by Japanese companies that would not require Japanese contributions.
Yoon, in a written response Wednesday to questions from foreign media including The Associated Press, said strained Korea-Japan relations must be mended as soon as possible. “I believe we must end the vicious cycle of mutual hostility and work together to seek our two countries’ common interests."
Washington will welcome better Japan-South Korea ties, as feuding over historical issues has undermined a U.S. push to reinforce its alliances in Asia to better cope with North Korean nuclear threats and China’s rise.
China’s dispute with Japan over tiny islands in the East China Sea heated up Thursday, with both sides accusing the other of violating their maritime territory after China coast guard vessels entered waters around an uninhabited island group that Japan controls and calls the Senkakus, and which Beijing also claims and calls the Diaoyu Islands. The islands are just east of Taiwan, which also claims the islands.
The summit also comes a day after Honduras announced it would end diplomatic recognition of Taiwan in favor of China, marking progress in Beijing's efforts to isolate the autonomously governed island.
The focus of attention at the two nations' first summit in Japan since 2011 is how Kishida responds to Yoon’s plan for the fund, a major concession by Seoul, and if or when they may resume defense dialogues and leaders' regular visits.
Kishida and Yoon are to have dinner together after the summit, then informal talks, according to Kishida's office. Media reports said Kishida will host a two-part dinner: “sukiyaki” beef stew for a first round, then “omu-rice,” or rice topped with omelet — reportedly Yoon’s favorite dish — at another restaurant.
Japan and South Korea have long had disputes over the 1910-1945 Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula and atrocities during World War II, which included forced prostitution of “comfort women” for Japanese soldiers, and territorial disputes over a cluster of islands.
Ties plunged after South Korea’s Supreme Court in 2018 ordered two Japanese companies, Nippon Steel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, to compensate some of their former Korean employees for forced labor during World War II.
Japan has insisted all compensation issues were settled by a 1965 treaty that normalized bilateral ties and was accompanied by $800 million in economic aid and loans from Tokyo to Seoul.
The history disputes spilled over to trade and defense. The two countries agreed to negotiate to restore South Korea's trade status to one before Japan imposed restrictions in 2019.
On Friday, a dozen South Korean business leaders traveling with Yoon are to meet Japanese counterparts and possibly discuss setting up a private fund for economic, security and cultural projects, including those for youths.
___
Associated Press writers Hyung-jin Kim and Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.
___
Find more AP Asia-Pacific coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/asia-pacific
