Japan Diplomatic Official's Outrageous Remarks Further Deteriorate Korea-Japan Relations

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] There are criticisms that the government's response to the offensive remarks made by a Japanese diplomatic official about President Moon Jae-in has been passive.

With negative public opinion forming regarding President Moon's visit to Japan and the holding of a Korea-Japan summit on the occasion of the Tokyo Olympics, there is a call for a stronger response.

This offensive remark incident involved Hirohisa Soma, the Minister in Charge at the Embassy of Japan in Korea, who recently met with domestic media and reportedly said, “The Japanese government has no leisure to care about Korea-Japan issues. President Moon is the only one engaging in a confrontation,” and also said that President Moon is “doing 'masterbation' (masturbation).”

In response, Minister Soma admitted to making the 'masterbation' remark but explained that “the comment was not directed at President Moon,” according to Koichi Aiboshi, the Ambassador of Japan to Korea.

However, it is reported that both domestic political circles and public opinion are negative. On the morning of the 17th, Choi Jong-geun, First Vice Foreign Minister, summoned Ambassador Aiboshi to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to protest Minister Soma’s remarks and demanded “visible and appropriate measures” to prevent recurrence for these reasons.

Nevertheless, many believe that the Japanese side is unlikely to take the 'visible measures' immediately requested by our side regarding the controversy over Minister Soma’s remarks.

Although Minister Soma made the remarks in front of reporters, it was not an 'official' occasion, and especially because he promptly expressed an apology and retraction on-site, stating it was an inappropriate remark.

Our government is also unlikely to take measures beyond summoning Ambassador Aiboshi. The government has only stated that it will observe the Japanese government's actions.

As a result, there is a view that the justification and possibility of President Moon attending the Tokyo Olympic opening ceremony and holding a Korea-Japan summit on that occasion have weakened.

Shin Beom-cheol, head of the Foreign and Security Center at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, said, “There has been a negative development regarding President Moon’s visit to Japan,” and “It is a situation where we must actively demand sincere measures from the Japanese government.”

Experts predict that Korea-Japan relations will deteriorate further.

Korea-Japan relations have worsened throughout President Moon’s term, starting with our side effectively nullifying the 2015 'Korea-Japan Comfort Women Agreement' by stating that the demands of the victims of the Japanese military’s comfort women were not reflected in the agreement process after the current government took office.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.