Japan's Kyodo News Agency said United States President Barack Obama has urged Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to work to improve relations with South Korea.

The news agency said in a report on Friday that Obama made the comments to the Japanese prime minister during a summit meeting last month in Brisbane, Australia. The report said the U.S. president had been concerned over the tension between the two allies of the U.S.

Obama is known to have mentioned Germany’s postwar efforts to reconcile with neighboring countries that suffered under the Nazis, calling on Japan to make efforts to improve its relations with South Korea.