TOKYO/SEOUL - The Japanese government summoned South Korea's Ambassador to Tokyo, Yun Duk-min, to express its dissatisfaction following the acceptance of wartime forced labor compensation by a South Korean victim's family from Hitachi Zosen Corp.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi stated that Vice Foreign Minister Masataka Okano voiced strong objections to the withdrawal of compensation by the victim's family, labeling it a clear deviation from the 1965 agreement between the countries. This move, according to Okano, places Japanese companies at an unfair disadvantage. Despite the friction, Seoul maintains that both nations are in continuous dialogue over various bilateral issues. The compensation withdrawal comes in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling favoring the victim's family, marking a significant, albeit contentious, moment in Japan-South Korea relations.