This combo photo shows the Republic of Korea's President Moon Jae-in (left) and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. (PHOTO / AP)
TOKYO/SEOUL - Japan's new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga spoke with the Republic of Korea's (ROK) President Moon Jae-in over phone on Thursday, seeking to mend bilateral ties between the two countries while Moon called for finding "an optimal solution" on the wartime forced labor issue.
The talks, which lasted about 20 minutes, was the first between the two leaders since Suga took office last week.
During the conversation, Japan PM Yoshihide Suga urged ROK President Moon Jae-in to create an opportunity for the two countries to "return to a constructive relationship," according to a Japanese official
During the conversation, Suga urged Moon to create an opportunity for the two countries to "return to a constructive relationship," according to a Japanese official who briefed reporters.
The official added that the two leaders agreed to work toward allowing business people to travel between the two countries amid COVID-19 restrictions.
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After the talks, Suga told reporters he would continue to "strongly urge South Korea to take appropriate action". According to local media, Suga's remarks continued the hardline stance taken by his predecessor Shinzo Abe.
However, he also said that "Japan and South Korea are extremely important neighbors and we must work together as well as with the United States to deal with issues including North Korea".
The ROK is also referred to as South Korea, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as North Korea.
Moon called for Suga to find an optimal solution on the issue of ROK victims who were forced into heavy labor by the Imperial Japan during World War II, according to the presidential Blue House
For his part, Moon Jae-in called for Suga to find an optimal solution on the issue of ROK victims who were forced into heavy labor by the Imperial Japan during World War II, according to the presidential Blue House.
Moon told Suga that it is true that there are different positions between the two countries over the forced labor issue, but Moon expressed hope to jointly find an optimal solution that both governments and all parties involved can accept.
Moon asked Suga to speed up communication efforts to resolve pending issues between Seoul and Tokyo, including the forced labor issue, with a fresh attitude of mind.
In response, Suga agreed to encourage dialogue efforts to resolve pending issues, according to the Blue House.
Moon said ROK and Japan are the closest neighbors sharing basic value and strategic interests, and partners to cooperate for peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia and the world.
During the call, Moon and Suga shared the need for cooperation between the two countries to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two leaders also agreed to more closely cooperate in the Korean Peninsula peace process.
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The phone call was the first conversation held between ROK and Japanese leaders in nine months amid a diplomatic feud since a meeting between Abe and Moon in Chengdu, China, in December last year.
Ties have deteriorated between both sides following a ROK's Supreme Court decision in October 2018 ordering Nippon Steel to compensate ROK people for forced labor under Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule.
Japan, for its part, has claimed the rulings are not in line with international law and run contrary to the foundation of friendly and cooperative relations between the two neighbors since the 1965 normalization of diplomatic ties.
In an apparent protest against the ruling, Japan tightened control over its export of three materials to ROK in July last year. The materials are vital to producing memory chips and display panels, the mainstay of ROK's export.
In the following month, the two sides removed each other from their respective whitelists of trusted trading partners that are given preferential export procedure.
