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| Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, right, attends a Cabinet meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap |
By Lee Min-hyung
Speculations are rising over Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon's possible role as a presidential envoy in resolving tensions with Japan.
President Moon Jae-in has reiterated his determination to push for a "two-track" diplomacy by partnering with the prime minister, giving more weight to the speculations. In the past, special envoys have played decisive roles in mending Korea-Japan relations. The 1961 summit between former President Park Chung-hee and Japanese Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda was realized after a mutual exchange of special envoys.
As a former correspondent in Japan with an extensive network in the country, Lee is seen as a valuable asset in negotiations, according to some experts.
Rep. Lee Sang-don of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party, said Monday that the Japanese side confirmed such sentiments during a three-way meeting with lawmakers from South Korea and the United States in Washington, D.C.
"The Japanese delegation clearly shared its message that it would hold a dialogue with the prime minister as a counterpart for negotiations," the minor opposition party lawmaker said in a local radio interview.
Seoul's bipartisan delegation, led by Rep. Chung Sye-kyun of the ruling Democratic Party, visited the U.S. capital for five days from July 24 for talks with counterparts from the two allies.
The prime minister is known to have special expertise in Japanese affairs. The former newspaper reporter worked as a Tokyo correspondent for three years in the early 1990s. He was also the vice chairman of the Korea-Japan Parliamentarians' Union when he was a lawmaker.
Cheong Wa Dae has declined to comment on the possibility of sending a presidential envoy.
Starting earlier this month, Japan has taken retaliatory action against South Korea apparently due to the latter's Supreme Court ruling last year that Japanese firms should pay compensation to Koreans forced to work for them during WWII.
Experts are calling for the need to restore trust between the two countries as the first step for a diplomatic breakthrough.
Shin Beom-chul, senior analyst at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said the latest signal from Tokyo shows that the bilateral diplomatic trust between the two countries has already been shattered.
"The Japanese foreign authority appears not to trust South Korea, so Japan is trying to contact a higher-ranking government figure from the South," Shin said.
What is most crucial is which negotiating cards the Prime Minister will bring if he is dispatched to Japan.
"At the moment, South Korea should delay Japan's plan to exclude Seoul from the whitelist of countries deemed trustworthy by Japan," Shin said.
The plan is part of Tokyo's retaliatory economic measures against Seoul. Critics expect Japan to announce the decision on Aug. 2.
Shin said Seoul does not need to react sensitively against Tokyo, but should put priority on resuming talks as early as possible.
"For instance, Seoul can underline the importance of the 1965 treaty between the two countries and show gestures that it respects the pact during the upcoming ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) this week," Shin said. The country then needs to express its willingness to resolve the diplomatic friction in a peaceful and positive manner during the international gathering of foreign ministers, he said.
"The South's best-case scenario is to resume diplomatic negotiations with Japan in this way, and delay Tokyo's additional plans for economic and political retaliations on Seoul," he said.
But he argued the South should also continue to find "fundamental solutions" which are related with the settlement of the bilateral historical dispute.
"Seoul needs to keep delivering its position on the wartime forced labor, and come up with any possible middle ground that can satisfy both sides," Shin said.
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