Kono urges Seoul to keep promises as historical flashpoints fray ties

@expat, what you say about 'medical' experiments on prisoners, and what others in this thread are talking about are not only the consequences of war, they are the tragedies of war. Don't for a minute think we should just keep shouting about it. Or need I remind you of what Germany did? THEY GOT OVER IT! Japan and Korea aren't mature enough to follow suit. This whole issue between the two countries is a reminder that some people (Germans, specifically) are a lot more mature about history and getting beyond it. I'm a Canadian, with no German heritage, and I like Japan. But I hate its juvenile political playground antics. And they ARE juvenile.

S.K started it's process of scrapping all the Int'l agreements, treaties with Japan into garbage can to converge it's diplomatic policy for coming unification with North. Time for Japan to completely eliminate Korean influence deep-rooted inside of Japan. Time for Japan to say Good bye forever, South Korea. enjoy new United Korea under Kim's regime. We can only hope New Korea tries not to spread refugees all over the world.

These incidents are all well-orchestrated political games. Toys dance with the tunes composed by political leaders.

Abe's approval rises as he tackles Russian diplomacy. South Korean radar spat also outweighs data scandal at home.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Abe-s-approval-rises-as-he-tackles-Russian-diplomacy

Opinion of Japanese legal experts on the verdict of S. Korea Supreme court regarding forced wartime labor:

http://justice.skr.jp/estatement.html (Enlgish)

http://justice.skr.jp/statement.html (Japanese)

Nevertheless, nowadays political demagogues instigating hatred among people are prevalent around the world. It is a sad trend.

@Lindsay

You can't choose which aggrements you want to honor and which you don't want to follow after you took the money and signed.

What about 2015 deal as Final and Irreversible?

Again signed the aggrement, took the money, took the apology from Abe. Once the administration changed we go back on the deal again! Flake, dishonorable, signing anything with Korea means 0.

Welcome to the Japanese game of blaming the victims. Once again, this is a matter of civil law, not international law.

Remember that the 1965 law was forced on the the Korean people by the U.S. through the Park dictatorship. This is a so-called international law that ought to be spat upon. But it is irrelevant to civil war, which is dealing with unpaid wages.

Dis he get his own plane yet?

He didn't even have to refer to the country.

urged South Korea to make good on promises made in bilateral pacts related to the issues of wartime labor (eufamisom slave labour)and women forced to work in Japanese military brothels( eufamisom comfort woman, eufamisom sex slaves) as diplomatic relations between the neighbors become increasingly frosty. And Japan just can't understand that their former underlings just don't appreciate having a foreign brutal occupation being downplayed. Who would have thought?

I don:t normally agree with the current government but Korea needs to live up to signed and executed agreements that are not even 4 years old.

Kono, don't waste your breath. Neither of the Koreas keep the promises they make.

Dear Mr. Kono,

If you want Korea to honor the past agreements, you must also push for Japanese historians, politicians and newspapers to stop downplaying and denying the atrocities carried out by the Japanese imperial forces during their attempted take over of Asia in the first half of last century.

Thank you.