"Japan Explains Sado Gwangsan World Heritage Recommendation to US Before Announcement"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] As the Japanese government recommends the Sado Mine, a site of forced labor of Koreans during the Japanese colonial period, to UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported on the 30th that Japan explained the related details to the United States before the announcement.

According to the report, on the 28th, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted Raymond Greene, the senior counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Japan, to provide a prior explanation. It is interpreted that Japan gave this prior explanation to the United States, which is not a directly involved party, because the U.S. side was concerned about the Korea-Japan conflict.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun stated, "The party Prime Minister Kishida was concerned about regarding the (Sado Mine World Heritage) recommendation was not South Korea but the United States." The newspaper also reported that considering the U.S. stance, Prime Minister Kishida first called former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the 26th to seek his opinion on the potential impact of this decision on U.S.-Japan relations.

If the Japanese government officially recommends the Sado Mine as a World Heritage site to UNESCO on the 1st of next month, the final decision on its registration will be made around June to July next year, about a year and a half later.

Following Prime Minister Kishida's announcement of the Sado Mine World Heritage recommendation, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a spokesperson's statement saying, "Despite repeated warnings from our side, the Japanese government's decision to promote the registration of the Sado Mine, a site of forced labor of Koreans during World War II, as a UNESCO World Heritage site is deeply regrettable," and "We strongly urge the cessation of such attempts."

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