A leading Japanese daily says Tokyo is leaning toward deferring efforts to recommend a mine where Koreans were forced into harsh labor during its colonial rule for UNESCO World Cultural Heritage designation.

Quoting a number of government officials on Thursday, the Yomiuri Shimbun said Tokyo believes the inscription of the Sado Mine in Niigata Prefecture is unlikely, even if it submits a recommendation, due to opposition from South Korea. 

There has not been a single case in which a candidate site that the World Heritage Committee rejected later made it to the World Heritage List.

The report said Tokyo will reach a decision on the matter around next week, though it may pursue the effort after 2024.

Tokyo apparently is considering deferring the recommendation due to a revision in the UNESCO system made last year in which the World Heritage Committee’s deliberation on designating a site is suspended if there is objection from another country or countries. 

This revision was sought by none other than Japan in an attempt to stop the dedication for the Documents of Nanjing Massacre.