Yomiuri and Sankei highlighted remarks made yesterday by ROK President Moon during a cabinet meeting. He reportedly emphasized that settling issues related to pro-Japan collaborators and treating those involved in Korea’s independence movement respectfully would be the start of becoming a “righteous nation.” The session was reportedly held at a memorial museum for independence activist Kim Koo to commemorate the centennial of the March First Movement this week. Sankei claimed that these remarks point to the Moon administration’s preference to look back on local anti-Japanese movements, conjecturing that the South Korean leader appears to have little interest in reversing the deterioration of diplomatic relations with Tokyo. 

According to Sankei, Foreign Minister Kono on Tuesday voiced concern about the South Korean leader’s remarks by telling the press: “We want Japan-ROK relations to be more future-oriented.” The daily also wrote that the GOJ on Tuesday filed a protest with the ROK government against a speech delivered by Foreign Minister Kang at a UN panel on Monday in Geneva expressing regret about the 2015 comfort women accord with Japan. Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga reportedly told the press that the Moon administration is obligated to implement the pact since it represents a bilateral commitment to settle the history dispute finally and irreversibly.