The United States hailed a landmark agreement between Japan and South Korea to resolve the issue of "comfort women" forced to work in Japanese brothels during World War II.
"We support this agreement and its full implementation, and believe this comprehensive resolution is an important gesture of healing and reconciliation that should be welcomed by the international community," U.S. national security adviser Susan Rice said in a statement on Monday
The dispute has long plagued ties between Seoul and Tokyo, although relations have warmed since Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met President Park Geun-hye last month. That meeting took place partly under pressure from the United States, which is keen to see its two allies get along.
After a 70-miniute meeting between foreign ministers of the two countries in Seoul on Monday, the two sides said they agreed to move on from the past for improved ties.
Japan's foreign minister Fumio Kishida said the Japanese government will take “deep responsibility” for the ‘comfort women’ issue and offered a one billion yen for a fund to help former comfort women.
South Korean foreign minister Yun Byung-Se said the Seoul government will confirm the comfort women issue as “finally resolved” and cease criticism over the issue when Japan carries through steps as pledged.
The South Korean government will also review the relocation of a statue symbolizing the comfort women at the request of Tokyo. The statue currently stands in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul
Up to 200,000 women are estimated to have been sexually enslaved by Japan during the war, many of them Korean.
In a telephone call with Abe on Monday, Park "hoped that since the two governments worked through a difficult process to reach this agreement, they can cooperate closely to start building trust and open a new relationship," her office quoted her as saying.
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Abe told reporters in Tokyo that Japan has apologised and expressed its remorse, but added future Japanese generations should not have to keep on doing so.
"We should never allow this problem to drag on into the next generation," he said, echoing remarks he made marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two on August 15. "From now on, Japan and South Korea will enter a new era."
By Alex Lee
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
