Japan, S. Korea in military accord talks
Source: Agencies |
January 11, 2011, Tuesday
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SOUTH Korean and Japanese defense chiefs discussed accords to share intelligence and provide each other with fuel, food and other materials, officials said yesterday in what would be the nations' first military agreement since Tokyo's colonial rule of the -Korean Peninsula ended in 1945.
The countries also agreed to boost defense cooperation in dealing with North Korea, according to Seoul's -Defense Ministry.
The defense chiefs agreed to continue talks on the military accords, though it was unclear when the next round would be.
Seoul and Tokyo are important trading and diplomatic partners, but a military pact is a sensitive topic in South Korea, where many people still harbor resentment against Japan's 35-year occupation. Ties often suffer over territorial and historical disputes stemming from the colonial legacy.
Yesterday's talks, however, came as Tokyo and Seoul struggle to deal with shared worries over North Korea, including Pyongyang's recent revelation of a uranium-enrichment facility that could give it another way to make a nuclear bomb.
Yesterday, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and his Japanese counterpart Toshimi Kitazawa said they wouldn't tolerate North Korean provocations that "seriously undermined" regional peace and security, Kim's office said in a statement.
They agreed to expand military exchanges, the statement said. To do so, the defense chiefs agreed to hold more consultations on the military accords designed to share important intelligence and assist each other's military with fuel, food and medical supplies during peacekeeping and search and rescue operations abroad, it said.
The countries also agreed to boost defense cooperation in dealing with North Korea, according to Seoul's -Defense Ministry.
The defense chiefs agreed to continue talks on the military accords, though it was unclear when the next round would be.
Seoul and Tokyo are important trading and diplomatic partners, but a military pact is a sensitive topic in South Korea, where many people still harbor resentment against Japan's 35-year occupation. Ties often suffer over territorial and historical disputes stemming from the colonial legacy.
Yesterday's talks, however, came as Tokyo and Seoul struggle to deal with shared worries over North Korea, including Pyongyang's recent revelation of a uranium-enrichment facility that could give it another way to make a nuclear bomb.
Yesterday, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and his Japanese counterpart Toshimi Kitazawa said they wouldn't tolerate North Korean provocations that "seriously undermined" regional peace and security, Kim's office said in a statement.
They agreed to expand military exchanges, the statement said. To do so, the defense chiefs agreed to hold more consultations on the military accords designed to share important intelligence and assist each other's military with fuel, food and medical supplies during peacekeeping and search and rescue operations abroad, it said.
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