S. Korea urges Japan to clearly uphold its past apology over wartime history

SEOUL, Aug. 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea urged Japan Monday to clearly uphold the spirit of its past administrations' apologies for wartime atrocities as Japan's premier is set to unveil his statement this week ahead of a key anniversary. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to unveil his statement on Friday, one day before the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. But analysts said that Abe is not likely to apologize for Tokyo's wartime atrocities, including its sexual enslavement of Korean and other Asian women. The Foreign Ministry called on Japan to "clearly" inherit the spirit of three key statements of apology for its wartime wrongdoings by past administrations -- the 1993 Kono, 1995 Murayama and 2005 Koizumi statements. "The South Korean government is keeping a close tab on Japan's repeated pledge to uphold the spirit of historical understanding by its past administrations, which has been a cornerstone of Seoul-Tokyo ties," Noh Kwang-il, ministry spokesman, said in a statement. Noh urged Japan to show a mature attitude by settling the historical issue and setting its relations with its neighboring countries in a fresh manner. "We hope that the Seoul-Tokyo ties will develop a virtuous circle and Japan could become a responsible member of the global community," he added. Seoul and Tokyo are seeking to mend their frayed relations in a landmark year, but little progress has been made due mainly to Japan's reluctance to sincerely apologize for the issue of the sex slaves. The two neighbors are preparing to celebrate Aug. 15, which marks the 70th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule and the end of World War II. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the normalization of their diplomatic ties. South Korea demands that Japan show sincerity by settling the sex slave issue "in a way that is agreeable to the living victims," including through a sincere apology and compensation. Japan insists the issue was settled under the normalization treaty of 1965. sooyeon@yna.co.kr (END)