The foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea held their first talks in more than a year amid soured bilateral ties, but failed to narrow gaps over issues involving wartime history and Tokyo's decision to release treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea.
Meeting with his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong on the fringes of the Group of Seven foreign ministerial gathering in London, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi demanded Seoul present at an early date a solution that would be acceptable to Tokyo with regard to the wartime labor and "comfort women" issues, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.
Chung, for his part, said it would be impossible for the two sides to resolve the issues unless Japan has a "correct" perception of history, South Korea's Foreign Ministry said.