Roh, Annan discuss Seoul's strained ties with Tokyo

SEOUL, May 16 (Yonhap) -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan discussed Seoul-Tokyo ties during his talks with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun on Tuesday, Roh's aides said.

Annan, on a three-day trip to Seoul, paid a courtesy call on President Roh, followed by a luncheon, they added.

"The secretary-general told President Roh that he could realize during his trip here that relations between South Korea and Japan are a very important issue," Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Jung Tae-ho said.

In response, Roh stressed that the current stand-off between the two nations is attributable to the history perceptions of some Japanese politicians, he added.

"President Roh told the secretary-general that it is important for Japan to admit the history and show a sincere attitude," Jung said.

Seoul-Tokyo ties have been at their lowest ebb in recent years amid Japan's attempts to gloss over its militaristic past and claim a set of South Korean islets in the East Sea.

Roh has cut off his regular summit with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to protest his repeated homage to the Yasukuni Shrine, a controversial shrine in Tokyo that honors millions of Japanese war dead, including convicted class-A war criminals from World War II.

Annan has called for Northeast Asian countries to follow the European path to regional coexistence, citing the importance of the role of their leaders.

"I think the dialogue between the three countries must continue," Annan said in a joint press conference after his talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon on Monday. "I also believe that as a general rule and principle, one has to be truthful to history. One has to capture truth and what happened in the past."

Roh and Annan also exchanged views on a range of regional and international issues including the North Korean nuclear weapons crisis, the presidential spokesman said.

Regarding the issue of human rights in North Korea, Roh said that he faces the difficulty of obtaining the public's consent while seeking to build up trust with the North, according to the official.

Roh, who succeeded his predecessor Kim Dae-jung's policy of engaging the North, has been struggling to strike a balance between economic aid and efforts to address various problems involving the communist state, observers say.

Conservatives here urge the government to link aid with Pyongyang's attitude towards the nuclear crisis and other problems, while progressive activists raise the need for unconditional assistance for those in need in the North.

The president and the secretary-general also shared the need for Seoul to play a greater role in international affairs, Jung added.

"I hope as we move into the future we are going to deepen even further our relationship. We expect you to play a greater role in international affairs," Annan was quoted as saying.

The U.N. chief is scheduled to fly to his next destination Japan later Tuesday.