Japanese Foreign Minister Seeking Meeting with Key Figures of Yoon Administration in Coordination (Comprehensive)

Hayashi Yoshimasa, Japanese Foreign Minister
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa will visit South Korea on the 9th to attend the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol. This visit marks the first time in about four years that a Japanese foreign minister has visited South Korea since then-Foreign Minister Kono Taro attended the Korea-US-Japan foreign ministers' meeting in June 2018.

Foreign Minister Hayashi, attending the inauguration ceremony as a special envoy of Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, will stay in South Korea for two days starting from this day. According to Kyodo News, Prime Minister Kishida stated regarding the dispatch of Foreign Minister Hayashi as a special envoy, "Although there are difficult issues between Korea and Japan, we cannot leave them as they are."

A meeting between the foreign ministers of Korea and Japan may take place on the day before the inauguration ceremony. Kyodo News reported, "Hayashi is coordinating to hold talks with Park Jin, the nominee for South Korea's Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the evening of that day."

During the talks, there is a possibility of exchanging views on historical issues such as compensation for victims of forced labor during the Japanese colonial period. The Japanese government has maintained the position that issues related to forced laborers and comfort women during the Japanese occupation were all resolved by the 1965 Korea-Japan Claims Agreement and the 2015 Korea-Japan Comfort Women Agreement, and has demanded that the Korean side propose solutions.

On the 10th, Foreign Minister Hayashi will attend President-elect Yoon's inauguration ceremony. Kyodo News stated, "Hayashi is coordinating to have a private meeting with President-elect Yoon after the inauguration ceremony."

During the meeting, Foreign Minister Hayashi is expected to deliver a congratulatory letter from Prime Minister Kishida on his inauguration. This letter is interpreted as a reply to the letter from President-elect Yoon, which was delivered to Prime Minister Kishida on the 26th of last month by the Korea-Japan Policy Consultation Delegation dispatched by President-elect Yoon.

It is reported that Foreign Minister Hayashi is currently coordinating meetings with President-elect Yoon and key figures of the new administration. NHK stated, "President-elect Yoon has shown enthusiasm for improving the Korea-Japan relationship, which has worsened to the worst level since the postwar period, so (Hayashi) will express expectations for the new administration while confirming cooperation on issues such as Ukraine and North Korea, using this as an opportunity to improve relations."

Meanwhile, opinions among Japanese people regarding expectations for improvement in Korea-Japan relations are divided. According to a public opinion poll conducted by the local private broadcaster network JNN from the 7th to 8th targeting 2,462 Japanese aged 18 and over, in response to the question "Will the launch of the Yoon Seok-yeol government lead to an improvement in Korea-Japan relations?" 44% answered "expect," while 46% answered "do not expect."

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