TOKYO, Nov 6 (NNN-NHK) – Japanese Foreign Minister, Toshimitsu Motegi, said that, there may not be much to be deduced from impromptu talks held between Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe and South Korean President, Moon Jae-in, a day earlier.
Amid strained ties between both countries, owing to a bitter wartime labour dispute that has spilled over into a tit-for-tat trade spat, the two leaders sat down for a 10-minute conversation in Bangkok, ahead of a summit between leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus Japan, China and South Korea.
The brief encounter marked the first time the two leaders have held sit-down talks since Dec last year. Motegi suggested though, that, not too much should be read into their conversation.
“We shouldn’t give too high an evaluation of this 10-minute conversation,” Motegi told a press briefing.
Sources close to the matter said, Abe, during the impromptu talks, responded to Moon proposing high-level dialogue be held between Tokyo and Seoul, aimed at improving the current discord which has affected trade and military ties between the two countries.
Motegi however played down the significance of the talks, stating that, “substance” was more important than the “level” of dialogue.
The General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) pact between both sides, signed in 2016, had enabled the two neighbours to share military information and has helped both sides to counter potential regional threats.
But in a sign that tensions between both sides could potentially thaw in the future, aside from Abe and Moon talking for the first time since last Dec, Abe also held talks with South Korean Prime Minister, Lee Nak-yon, last month, marking the highest-level talks held between both countries in more than a year.
During a meeting between Japanese and South Korean lawmakers last Friday, both parties agreed in principle that more dialogue and work in general, was necessary to break the current statement and ease tensions.
“Our role is to build a framework of cooperation, not conflict. Now we must make the correct choices that will enable us to break the stalemate and find a path towards resolution,” Fukushiro Nukaga, leader of a nonpartisan group of lawmakers here, committed to promoting friendly ties between Japan and South Korea, told a meeting with South Korean lawmakers.
Kang Chang Il, his South Korean counterpart, said, while ties remained strained with the wartime labour dispute, impacting the two countries’ trade relations, the continuation of dialogue remains paramount.
Bilateral ties are “in a difficult situation, as what was a dispute over history has spread to economic and security areas. In order to resolve the dispute, we must continue dialogue,” said Kang.– NNN-NHK
