Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - In order to strengthen the stability and security of the North Asian area, South Korea must resolve its l...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - In order to strengthen the stability and security of the North Asian area, South Korea must resolve its long-standing differences with Japan and make peace with North Korea, according to South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol.
Yoon said Tokyo had become a partner in addressing challenges to global freedom while speaking at a ceremony to commemorate the end of Japan's colonial rule over the Korean peninsula in 1945. He urged both countries to resolve differences stemming from that era.
"It will also assist us solve the historical challenges when Korea-Japan relations move towards a common future and when the mission of our times align, based on our shared universal values," he said in prepared remarks.
Relations between the U.S. allies have been strained due to disagreements including Korean charges that Japan used forced labor and other crimes, including forcing women to serve in the military's brothels during the war.
The conservative Yoon, who was elected in May, has vowed to strengthen ties with Japan.
In order to contribute to international peace and prosperity, he called for widespread cooperation in a variety of fields, including economics, security, and social and cultural interactions.
Yoon reiterated his pledge to offer extensive assistance to North Korea in exchange for an end to the country's nuclear weapons development and the start of a "real and substantial" process to do away with them.
Yoon stated, "We will carry out programs to modernize ports and airports for international trade in addition to implementing a large-scale food program and offering support for electricity generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure.
He continued in the English translation of his speech, "The South is also willing to help increase the farm production of its neighbors, modernize hospitals and medical facilities, and take initiatives for international investment and financial support."
In the midst of stalled denuclearization negotiations, North Korea appears to be poised to conduct its first nuclear bomb test since 2017 and has accused the South of being to responsibility for the country's COVID-19 breakout, which Seoul disputes.
Since their fight, which lasted from 1950 to 1953, concluded in a truce rather than a peace treaty, the two countries officially are still at war.
