S. Korea-Japan tensions remain high even after 1 year since forced labor ruling
- 4 years ago
강제징용 판결 1년... 한일갈등 해결 여전히 불투명
Exactly one year ago today,... South Korea's top court ruled that Japanese companies compensate South Korean victims of its wartime forced labor.
Twelve months on.... the issue is still far from settled.
And our Kim Min-ji takes a look at where the two countries stand now... and what's ahead for the two neighbors.
Relations between South Korea and Japan took a turn for the worse,... following a ruling in October last year by South Korea's Supreme Court ordering Japanese firms to compensate South Korean victims of forced labor during its colonial rule in the early to mid-20th century.
"The plaintiffs are not asking for unpaid wages but are asking for compensation for the illegal actions by Japanese firms. The 1965 state-to-state treaty on normalizing relations does not include compensation for rights violated by Japan's illegal occupation."
Exactly a year has passed,... but Japan continues to claim reparation matters were settled through a 1965 accord aimed at normalizing relations between the two sides.
What started as a thorny historical dispute soon expanded to trade and security.
Japan stripped South Korea of its preferential treatment in export procedures,... on top of imposing tougher restrictions on the export of three high-tech materials used in the production of chips and displays.
Seoul fired back by taking Tokyo off its own trade whitelist... and decided to withdraw from a joint military-intelligence sharing pact known as GSOMIA,... once it expires on November 23rd.
However, there were efforts along the way to build bridges.
Seoul suggested a one plus one proposal in June -- whereby South Korean and Japanese firms voluntarily create a fund to compensate the victims,... but Tokyo rebuffed the offer,... saying any deal that harms Japanese firms will not be accepted.
Also, amid hopes of finding a breakthrough,... South Korea's Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon recently had a one-on-one with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo -- where they shared the view that further escalation of tensions should be avoided.
While the momentum for talks may have been reignited,... experts say getting the two countries on the same page will not happen overnight given their vast differences.
"Unless Japan drops its claim that the labor compensation ruling runs counter to international law... and that reparation issues have been settled under the 1965 deal, there's not much we can do right now. That said, the key will be how to get the Japanese companies involved to voluntarily compensate the victims... and work out a solution from there."
Attention is on whether President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet some time in the near future... and display some sort of political determination toward a resolution.
The general consensus is that the issue can no longer be left unaddressed... given that bilateral trust is deteriorating... and there's speculation matters could get even worse after GSOMIA expires.
Kim M
Exactly one year ago today,... South Korea's top court ruled that Japanese companies compensate South Korean victims of its wartime forced labor.
Twelve months on.... the issue is still far from settled.
And our Kim Min-ji takes a look at where the two countries stand now... and what's ahead for the two neighbors.
Relations between South Korea and Japan took a turn for the worse,... following a ruling in October last year by South Korea's Supreme Court ordering Japanese firms to compensate South Korean victims of forced labor during its colonial rule in the early to mid-20th century.
"The plaintiffs are not asking for unpaid wages but are asking for compensation for the illegal actions by Japanese firms. The 1965 state-to-state treaty on normalizing relations does not include compensation for rights violated by Japan's illegal occupation."
Exactly a year has passed,... but Japan continues to claim reparation matters were settled through a 1965 accord aimed at normalizing relations between the two sides.
What started as a thorny historical dispute soon expanded to trade and security.
Japan stripped South Korea of its preferential treatment in export procedures,... on top of imposing tougher restrictions on the export of three high-tech materials used in the production of chips and displays.
Seoul fired back by taking Tokyo off its own trade whitelist... and decided to withdraw from a joint military-intelligence sharing pact known as GSOMIA,... once it expires on November 23rd.
However, there were efforts along the way to build bridges.
Seoul suggested a one plus one proposal in June -- whereby South Korean and Japanese firms voluntarily create a fund to compensate the victims,... but Tokyo rebuffed the offer,... saying any deal that harms Japanese firms will not be accepted.
Also, amid hopes of finding a breakthrough,... South Korea's Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon recently had a one-on-one with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo -- where they shared the view that further escalation of tensions should be avoided.
While the momentum for talks may have been reignited,... experts say getting the two countries on the same page will not happen overnight given their vast differences.
"Unless Japan drops its claim that the labor compensation ruling runs counter to international law... and that reparation issues have been settled under the 1965 deal, there's not much we can do right now. That said, the key will be how to get the Japanese companies involved to voluntarily compensate the victims... and work out a solution from there."
Attention is on whether President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet some time in the near future... and display some sort of political determination toward a resolution.
The general consensus is that the issue can no longer be left unaddressed... given that bilateral trust is deteriorating... and there's speculation matters could get even worse after GSOMIA expires.
Kim M