TOKYO (AP) – Japan’s foreign minister on Monday accused South Korea of worsening already strained ties by making “illegal” claims for compensation for the sexual abuse of Korean women and the use of forced labor during World War II.
Toshimitsu Motegi, in a diplomatic policy speech in parliament, said a recent South Korean ruling ordering Japan to compensate 12 South Korean women who were sexually abused in Japanese military brothels during the war was “a absolutely unimaginable abnormal development in international law and in bilateral relations. ”
“We strongly urge South Korea to correct violations of international law as soon as possible,” and to restore healthy relations, Motegi said.
Seoul Central District Court ruled on January 8 that the Japanese government must award 100 million won ($ 91,360) to each of the 12 elderly women who filed lawsuits in 2013 over their war suffering as “comfort women.” .
They were among tens of thousands of Japanese-occupied women in Asia and the Pacific who were sent to Japanese front-line brothels.
The ruling has exacerbated tensions between the two countries, whose relations have already fallen to their lowest level in decades in connection with previous South Korean rulings over Japan’s actions during its 1910-1945 colonial rule on the Korean Peninsula.
In 2018, the Supreme Court of South Korea ordered Japanese companies to provide reparations to South Koreans who were forced to work in their factories during the war.
The forced labor dispute has turned into a trade dispute and prompted South Korea to threaten to drop a 2016 military intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan, a key component of their regional defense cooperation with the United States.
Japan protested against the court’s rulings, saying all wartime compensation issues had been resolved under a 1965 treaty that normalized relations in which Japan provided $ 500 million in financial assistance.
In Seoul, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Monday that “it would not be desirable for bilateral relations” if Seoul and Tokyo fail to find a diplomatic solution before South Korean courts liquidate the companies’ local assets. Japanese women who were confiscated after refusing to compensate Korean war workers.
Moon also described the government of “comfort women” as “honestly a complicated development” for government efforts to improve relations with Japan. Speaking at a press conference, he did not give details about possible diplomatic efforts.
Motegi called South Korea an “important neighbor” and said its cooperation with Japan and the United States was “indispensable for regional security”, including in response to North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
Japan, under a 1995 Semi-Government Fund for Asian Women, has provided payments and letters of apology to certified victims of its war sexual abuse in five countries, resolving disputes with all but South Korea. 60 victims in South Korea received 5 million yen ($ 48,200) each from the 367 million yen ($ 3.5 million) fund, according to Japan’s foreign ministry, but many others refused to accept the money.
In 2015, the then governments of South Korea and Japan reached what should have been a final and irreversible agreement to resolve the issue with a new 1 billion yen ($ 9 million) fund set up by the Japanese government, but the current Moon administration has dissolved. he said the agreement was reached without proper consultation with the victims.
In what appeared to be a change of tone, Moon said Monday that South Korea recognizes the 2015 agreement as a legitimate agreement that should provide a basis for finding a better solution that satisfies the victims. He did not elaborate.
Japanese Cabinet Deputy Chief of Staff Manabu Sakai said his government had “taken note” of Moon’s comment. Japan continues to call for appropriate measures from South Korea, while considering all possible options, he said.
“We will look at what action will be taken by the South Korean side,” Sakai said.
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Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung of Seoul, South Korea, contributed to the report.
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