South Korea cancels ceremony with Japan after denouncing new grievance over Yasukuni Shrine

MADRID 23 Nov. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The South Korean Government has announced that it will not send representatives to a joint ceremony with Japan after discovering that among those attending is a congresswoman who visited the Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo, where war criminals are buried.

“Taking into account various circumstances related to the memorial service, our Government has decided not to participate in the Sado mine memorial service scheduled for the 24th,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The mining complex was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in July after a last-minute agreement by South Korea, which had opposed its inclusion, claiming the site is linked to forced labor by Koreans in times of war.

One of the conditions both countries agreed to then was that Japan hold an annual commemorative event to remember all workers.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae Yulm indicated that the Government had done everything possible to try to resolve the problem before the event, but logistical reasons and lack of time made a solution impossible.

Thus, “and because there was not enough time to resolve the differences between the diplomatic authorities of the two countries regarding the commemorative ceremony, we consider that it would be difficult for both countries to reach an acceptable agreement before the commemorative ceremony,” according to the note, collected by the official South Korean news agency Yonhap.

At the epicenter of the controversy is deputy Akiko Ikuina, of the Liberal Democratic Party led by the country’s prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba. The deputy visited the sanctuary on August 15, 2022, on the anniversary of the Japanese surrender in World War II.

Japanese government sources on condition of anonymity have regretted South Korea’s decision, especially because it occurs at a time when bilateral relations have begun to improve after decades of wear and tear after the war, according to statements to the official news agency. Japanese Kyodo.

In fact, Ishiba and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum summit in Lima last week to ratify their intention to develop bilateral relations in a “comprehensive” manner, not only in politics and business, but also in other fields such as culture.