Tokyo is widely expected to recommend a set of mining facilities, where Koreans were forced into harsh labor during Japan's colonial rule, as a candidate for UNESCO World Cultural Heritage designation.

An official at Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs told Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday that a review committee is looking to recommend the Sado mine in Niigata Prefecture for UNESCO designation.

The committee is reportedly considering the mining area as the country's only recommendation. If it is selected, Tokyo is expected to submit a letter of recommendation to UNESCO by February 1, after which the UN body will decide on its designation in 2023.

The Sado mine, which originally operated as a gold mine, was turned into a facility to produce war-related materials, such as copper, iron and zinc during World War Two.

The Foundation for Victims of Forced Mobilization by Imperial Japan estimated that up to one-thousand-200 Koreans were forced into treacherous working conditions at the mine during the war.

It is unclear whether Japan will mention the full wartime history in its recommendation. The country has yet to fulfill an earlier pledge to inform people about the forced labor of Koreans on Hashima Island, a site recognized as UNESCO World Heritage in 2015.