Yoon's delegates meet Japan's top diplomat, note need for strengthened Seoul-Tokyo ties

Rep. Chung Jin-suk, center, head of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's delegation, speaks to reporters upon arrival at Japan's Narita International Airport, April 24. Yonhap

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's delegation had a meeting with Japan's top diplomat Monday and the two sides agreed on the need to strengthen cooperation between the neighboring countries, the head of the team said.

The seven-member delegation, led by Rep. Chung Jin-suk of Yoon's conservative People Power Party, arrived in Tokyo the previous day for a five-day stay two weeks ahead of his inauguration.

The delegates met with Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and agreed to "reach a conclusion" on pending bilateral issues "through dialogue," Chung told reporters.

During the meeting, however, Yoon's team did not raise any specific proposal related to such high-profile matters as wartime forced labor and sexual enslavement of Korean women, which are longtime sources of diplomatic stand-offs between Seoul and Tokyo, he added. (Yonhap)