Japan to send FM to S. Korean president’s inauguration

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan says its foreign minister will attend new South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s inauguration ceremony next week as part of an effort to bring the countries’ strained relations back to normal. Although the decision to send Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi to Seoul signals Japan’s willingness to improve dialogue with South Korea, the absence of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the event underscores the still unresolved issues that have been a constant thorn in their ties. Relations have plunged to their lowest level because of disputes over Japanese atrocities including brutal treatment of wartime Korean laborers and sexual abuse of women. Japan maintains all compensation issues have been settled under a 1965 treaty normalizing their ties.