President Lee says scrapping past deals with Japan "undesirable"

President Lee had an interview with a Japanese newspaper ahead of his talks with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba this weekend.

During which, he dismissed the idea of scrapping past deals with Japan on thorny wartime issues.

Our senior Presidential Office Correspondent Yoon Jung-min reports.

Overturning past agreements with Japan "undesirable."

That was according to President Lee Jae Myung in an interview with Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun, released on Thursday, referring to past agreements on wartime issues of Korean sex slaves and forced laborers.

Lee says, though the deals finalized under previous conservative governments are difficult to accept, they are commitments made between nations.

At the same time, he noted the feelings of the Korean people should be taken into account, adding that what's more important is offering words of consolation in a sincere manner.

In 2015, the so-called "comfort women" agreement was reached under the Park Geun-hye administration, and in 2023, the third-party compensation scheme for wartime laborers was agreed under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.

Those agreements sparked some backlash in Korea.

Calling Japan "very important," Lee also stressed the importance of the Seoul-Tokyo relationship, ahead of his talks with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba this weekend in Tokyo, hoping to expand cooperation on the economy, society and culture.

The liberal-leaning leader highly appreciated the Kim Dae-jung-Obuchi Declaration signed in 1998 to chart a new path for a "future-oriented" partnership, based upon which he expressed hopes to announce a new joint declaration that goes beyond.

"I think we can expect something. A final coordination is needed, so it's hard to tell at the moment."

Cooperation with Japan, as well as trilateral cooperation with the U.S., is crucial in more than one way: North Korea.

President Lee did mention the North Korea nuclear issue, outlining a three-stage roadmap for the first time that involves freezing, reducing and dismantling the North's nuclear and missile programs.

He added that this will be pursued while maintaining a "close coordination" with the U.S. and pursuing "active inter-Korean dialogue."

He also pitched multilateral cooperation involving the U.S., Russia, the two Koreas and Japan on the Arctic shipping route project.

On China, President Lee said there are aspects of competition and cooperation when it comes to the bilateral relationship, adding it should be managed taking into account "various aspects."

When the South Korean leader wraps up his talks with Ishiba this weekend in Tokyo, he'll be flying straight to Washington for his first summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Yoon Jung-min, Arirang News.