Press Briefing
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations Cho Tai-young
Nov. 19, 2013 14:30 KST


Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

Today, I have three announcements to make.

First, the 4th Counter-terrorism Consultation between the Republic of Korea and the United States will take place in Seoul on November 21.

The ROK and the US delegations to the meeting will be led by Huh Chul, Ambassador for Global Counterterrorism Cooperation, and Jerry Lanier, Acting Coordinator of the Bureau of Counterterrorism, respectively. In the Consultation, the two sides will exchange views on the global and regional terrorism situations.

They will also discuss ways for the two countries to work together on bilateral and multilateral levels on such issues as using the Internet to launder money, procure funds for terrorism-related activities and conduct cyber terrorism.

The Consultation, first held in 2008, is expected to serve as an opportunity for the two countries to work more closely together on terrorism issues.

Moving on to the second announcement, the 6th ROK-UK Consultation on Development Cooperation Policy will take place in Seoul on November 20.

The ROK and the UK delegations to the meeting will be led by Oh Young-ju, the Foreign Ministry’s Director-General for Development Cooperation, and Anthony Smith, Director of the International Relations Division of the UK Department of International Development, respectively.

The Consultation will follow up on the ROK-UK agreement, reached during President Park Geun-hye’s state visit to the UK in early November, to promote cooperation on international development. The meeting will mark the first of its kind in three years since the fifth held in 2010.

In the forthcoming meeting, the two sides will discuss their respective development cooperation policies and key global development issues, including the Busan Global Partnership and the post-2015 development mechanism as well as ways to conduct future joint cooperation projects in third countries.

Lastly, civilian political advisers to the President of Myanmar will visit the ROK from November 24 through 28 as part of the Foreign Ministry’s expert invitation program.

The purpose of the visit is to discuss ways to step up cooperation between the two countries. It is also expected to serve as an opportunity to build a network with relevant officials of the ROK.

During its visit to the ROK, the delegation will meet with the Foreign Ministry’s Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs Shin Dong-ik and visit the Asan Institute for Policy Studies and the Institute for East Asian Studies of Sogang University.

This is all for my opening statement.


[Q&A]

Q: Earlier today, the Ministry of Security and Public Administration released the National Archives of Korea’s documents regarding Japan’s colonial rule. Many people express curiosity as to why these documents were found sixty years later. Please tell us how these documents fell into the possession of the Korean Embassy in Tokyo at that time and whether or not the ROK government has been aware of its existence.

A: In fact, I have nothing that I can tell you for sure at this point in answer to those two questions, as that happened a very long time ago. The documents were created in 1953. The ROK government is not sure at this point as to exactly how the documents fell into the possession of the then ROK mission in Japan.

Anyway, as announced today, the documents were presumably prepared to be used for the 2nd ROK-Japan meeting in April 1953.

They were sitting in the ROK Embassy in Japan all along, but their existence seems to have remained unknown as they are very old records.

Q: We heard that they had been found during the moving process of the embassy in June. How many days after finding them did the embassy send them to Seoul? Although I am not sure whether this is true, I have heard that the ROK Foreign Ministry opposed to releasing them. Is this true?

A: For starters, let me answer your second question by saying that it is not true. I have never heard that the Foreign Ministry opposed to disclosing them.

It is my understanding that these records were found in the moving process of the ROK Embassy in Japan back to its original building from its temporary one in June 2013. They were sent to the Foreign Ministry headquarters in Seoul in July and handed over to the National Archives of Korea in August.

Q: Should the details in the materials be found true, can requests for additional compensations be made to Japan?

A: They are voluminous materials. I think we should first thoroughly analyze their nature and contents.
 
Q: In her meeting with China’s State Councilor Yang Jiechi yesterday, President Park Geun-hye extended her appreciation to China for its cooperation on the ROK’s efforts to build a stone monument honoring patriot Ahn Jung-geun. In response to that, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary reportedly mentioned that Japan views Ahn as a criminal and has repeatedly conveyed that view. What does the ROK government make of his remarks?

A: Well, the ROK government has not been informed of that view by the Japanese government. According to a press report, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary has indeed expressed that view.

He would never have made such remarks if he reflects on what kind of person Ito Hirobumi was and what Japan did to its neighboring countries during the period of its imperialistic and chauvinistic rule.
 
The ROK government holds the position that responsible politicians of Japan should humbly repent for their country’s history of imperialist invasions and make efforts to understand the sentiments of the peoples of countries concerned. The ROK government urges the Japanese government to do so.

Q: I have a question on the envisioned monument for patriot Ahn. You have just mentioned that the ROK government has not been notified of the Japanese government’s view of patriot Ahn. To the contrary, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary said that the Japanese government had expressed the view to the ROK government on numerous occasions. Please tell us which is true.

Also, please share with us the progress in setting up the stone monument.

A: Let me repeat what I said just moments ago: The Japanese government has not delivered to the ROK government through the diplomatic channel the position expressed by the Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary.

With regard to the aforementioned monument, ROK-China consultations are moving forward smoothly. Patriot An Jung-geun sacrificed himself for the independence of the Korean Peninsula and peace in the Eastern world. It is deeply regrettable that such a man is described as a criminal. The ROK government once again urges the Japanese government to humbly repent for and squarely face its past wrongdoings.

Q: I have a question about the records found at the National Archives of Korea. I understand that the records include lists of those forced into labor during Japan’s colonial rule. Can these records be seen as put to sufficient use in the ROK-Japan meeting at the time? Is it the ROK Foreign Ministry’s view that the issue involving the people on the lists was addressed under the 1965 ROK-Japan Claims Settlement Agreement?

A: As you are well aware, the materials refer to things that happened a very long time ago. So, I think that there is nothing that I can say for sure about them right now. As I told you earlier, the records are presumed to have been created in 1953 for use in the ROK-Japan meeting. It is hard for me to say for sure right now whether they were indeed used at the meeting.

Q: I have a further question about the material. Will the discovery of these materials affect the ROK-Japan relations in any way?

A: As I said earlier, these materials are voluminous. The National Archives of Korea conducted the first round of examination. As announced earlier today, as they are so voluminous, the organization did not examine every single detail but rather extracted some samples and looked into them. I believe work will be undertaken to verify and examine more details in the materials.

In answer to your question regarding its possible impact on ROK-Japan relations, let me tell you this: Although their thorough examination has yet to be completed, the materials once again demonstrate that Japan committed so many wrongdoings in its imperialist past. Japan should clearly acknowledge that.

I will conclude today’s briefing. Thank you.


* unofficial translation