South Korea and Japan held a director-general meeting to discuss bilateral issues, including conflicts over Tokyo’s trade restrictions and Seoul’s responsive measures. 

The South Korean foreign ministry’s director-general for Asian and Pacific affairs Kim Jung-han sat down for around 90 minutes with his Japanese counterpart, Shigeki Takizaki, in Tokyo on Friday. 

According to Seoul’s foreign ministry, Kim explained that the South Korean government’s stance on Japan’s wartime forced labor issues and reiterated Seoul’s demand that Tokyo swiftly retract its retaliatory export curbs. 

While pointing out the need to resolve the trade issues through dialogue between the respective authorities, he also called for the Japanese government’s attention to anti-Korean campaigns by ultra-right wing groups in Japan. 

Japan’s Kyodo News said that Takizaki demanded Seoul withdraw its move to remove Tokyo from the whitelist of its most trusted trade partners. He also reportedly called on South Korea to resolve Japan’s wartime forced labor issues by abiding with international laws, while relaying Tokyo’s position over Seoul’s decision to terminate a bilateral military intelligence sharing agreement.