ANALYSISYoon's pro-Japan speech likely to expedite settlement of forced labor issue

• Published date: 02 March 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

President Yoon Suk Yeol's speech addressing Japan as a "partner" is likely to expedite talks with Tokyo to reach a settlement on forced labor issues, according to diplomatic observers, Thursday. But the experts were cautious about giving a timeline on when the two countries will reach an agreement, stressing that the ball is now in Japan's court.

During his March 1 Independence Movement Day speech, Wednesday, Yoon addressed Japan as "a partner that shares universal values," in the latest of his government's gestures to improve relations with the neighboring country that have slumped to their worst level in recent years.

Yoon's call for a future-oriented partnership with Japan was unprecedented for a Korean president in a speech commemorating the 1919 uprising against Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule. Such rhetoric signals Yoon's determination to mend ties with Japan, especially concerning the forced labor issue, according to experts.

At the center of the years-long diplomatic tussle between Seoul and Tokyo is a 2018 Supreme Court ruling in Korea that ordered two Japanese businesses ? Mitsubishi Heavy and Nippon Steel ? to compensate Koreans who were forced to work in their factories during the colonial occupation. Both firms refused to comply with the ruling.

"The forced labor issue, if resolved, will serve as momentum in mending frayed ties with Japan and both governments are well aware of that," Lee Won-deog, a professor of Japanese studies at Kookmin University, told The Korea Times.

"In that sense, with Yoon's March 1 speech, I would say Korea has done 90 percent of the work needed (to resolve the issue) and now the remaining 10 percent should be done by Japan," he said. "The president's remarks calling Japan a partner will positively affect the ongoing discussions."

Last month, the Korean government revealed a plan to launch a private foundation where Japanese firms can make voluntary donations to compensate victims of forced labor. But Japan has yet to give a positive response to the proposal.

Lee viewed that the Korean government seems to be hoping to reach a settlement on the forced labor issue by the end of March at the earliest, considering Yoon's summit with U.S. President Joe Biden slated for April...