By Kim Yon-se
Korea Times Correspondent
TOKYO ― President Lee Myung-bak and Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda will hold a summit in Tokyo today to discuss the resumption of free trade negotiations and ways to promote relations between the two countries.
The two leaders are also expected to discuss North Korea's nuclear programs, and cooperation on environmental issues.
On his way home from the United States, where he held a summit with President George W. Bush, Lee arrived in Tokyo for a two-day visit.
While in Tokyo, Lee is to meet with Emperor Akihito, hold a roundtable with Japanese business leaders and appear on a TV talk show.
Lee has emphasized that the two countries should ``let bygones be bygones'' and build a future-oriented relationship, since he took office in late February. However, history-related resentment still runs deep on both sides.
Following his inauguration, Lee met with Fukuda in Seoul, and the two leaders agreed to resume the shuttle diplomacy that had seen the heads of state of the two countries exchange visits on a regular basis.
Lee has been trying to build a mature partnership between Seoul and Tokyo, based on his ``pragmatic diplomacy.''
He proposed that South Korea and Japan stop feuding over their history and instead build a future-oriented relationship with a pragmatic attitude. ``Historical truth must not be ignored, but we can no longer afford to give up future relations due to disputes over the past,'' Lee said.
Seoul and Tokyo have been at odds over territorial and historical issues, such as Japanese leaders' repeated visits to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, compensation for Korean ``comfort'' women and distortions of their shared history in Japanese textbooks.
The bilateral relationship deteriorated to the extent that the ``shuttle diplomacy'' was suspended during the five-year term of Lee's predecessor, Roh Moo-hyun.
Since his election last December, however, Lee has made efforts to mend ties with Japan, including the dispatch of his elder brother, National Assembly Vice Speaker Lee Sang-deuk, to Tokyo as his special envoy in January.
The Japanese side reacted favorably, with Prime Minister Fukuda traveling to Seoul to attend Lee's inauguration on Feb. 25.
Tokyo expects a new era in ties with Korea, according to the Diplomatic Blue Book 2008, released last Tuesday. The prediction is based on pledges by Fukuda and Lee made shortly after the latter took office. Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura submitted the book to the Cabinet, which approved it.
On Japan's relations with North Korea, the publication said, ``There has been no concrete progress in pending issues, including the issue of Japanese abducted by North Korea.''
It promises to seek a solution to the abduction issue through Tokyo-Pyongyang dialogue, while maintaining close cooperation with participating countries in the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programs.