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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe gives his annual policy address during the first day of the regular session of the Japanese Diet on Jan. 28.
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Japanese prime minister says forced laborer issue has already been resolved
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has stated that the decision to omit South Korea-Japan relations from his annual policy speech was made because he thought “it would be inappropriate to get involved in a war of words.” Abe’s statement came in response to the question “Why didn’t you mention Korea in the annual policy speech?” posed by Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People, in a plenary session of the Japanese House of Representatives on Jan. 30. In the address delivered at a regular session in the House of Representatives on Jan. 28, Abe’s only reference to South Korea was a remark about North Korea, in which he stated Tokyo would be “closely coordinating with the international community, in particular Washington and Seoul.” “It is regrettable that there have been moves that appear to deny even the premise of the bilateral relations built between Korea and Japan, including the issue of ‘laborers from the former Korean Peninsula’ [the Japanese government’s expression for Korean victims of forced labor],” Abe said. “The government is considering a firm response in accordance with international law. I will continue to advocate for what is right based on the position that Japan has consistently stood behind, and I strongly urge Korea to respond appropriately.” Abe went on to say, “[Because of these circumstances] I limited my remarks about South Korea to solidarity regarding North Korea.” It appears that Abe intentionally chose to refrain from remarks about South Korea in his annual policy address because any further comments would have had to be critical in nature. Claims issue of threatening low-altitude flyby has already been resolved On the issue of the low-flying Japanese patrol aircraft, Abe said “Regarding the matter a Korean naval vessel locking its targeting radar on one of our patrol aircraft, agreement has already been reached between defense authorities from a professional and technical perspective, and my understanding of this incident and our response is in line with what Minister Takeshi Iwaya and the Ministry of Defense have already stated on several occasions.” The Japanese Ministry of Defense claims that the Korean destroyer locked its targeting radar onto the Japanese patrol aircraft, and that the aircraft was not flying at a low altitude. By Cho Ki-weon, Tokyo correspondent Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
