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The Korea-Japan summit tipped for Oct. 9 in Seoul will be the first test of the bilateral relationship under the new Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Sources of conflict, however, are likely to remain the same as the two leaders will gloss over issues that have chilled bilateral ties, like the controversial visits to the militarist Yasukuni Shrine, where Japan¡¯s war dead are honored, by Japanese leaders, and Tokyo¡¯s territorial claims to Korea¡¯s Dokdo islets. In view of what the two sides have been saying regarding the war shrine, chances are very slim that Abe will make any decisive remarks about the issue during the summit. Government officials say the two leaders are likely to confine themselves to diplomatic rhetoric.
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Japan¡¯s new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (center), then deputy secretary general of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, visits the Yasukuni Shrine on Aug. 15, 2005. /AP-Yonhap
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The Korean government is aware of this. It has reportedly delivered its position via various channels that the Japanese prime minister should simply refrain from visiting the shrine, but it is not asking for a public commitment from Abe. In preparing for the summit, Seoul has told Tokyo that its position remains unchanged that the summit can take place if Abe does not visit Yasukuni, and Tokyo said it is aware of that position, sources said.
In light of the request from both Seoul and Beijing, Abe is expected to refrain from visiting the shrine for the time being. But the matter is as it were in a state of ceasefire rather than a permanent peace. Many expect Abe will have to pay his respects at the shrine next year considering the political situation he faces at home. If he does, Seoul will suspend summits again. Abe is reportedly preparing to explain his positions about Japan¡¯s past history in general in the meeting with President Roh Moo-hyun, but details are not yet known.
Sanctions against North Korea could also be a major item on the agenda. The two countries have fundamentally different views on the issue, and it remains to be seen if a compromise can be achieved: this will after all be the first summit between Seoul and Tokyo since North Korea¡¯s missile tests in July. Another issue of interest is whether Japanese kidnapped by North Korea and North Korea¡¯s human rights issues will come up in the summit. Abe¡¯s political career owes a great deal to his championing of the two issues.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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