Japan, South Korea business leaders look for reset after wartime labour strain

TOKYO (Reuters) – Top business leaders from Japan and South Korea met in Tokyo on Friday, pledging greater economic cooperation as they seek to pivot away from years of strain and acrimony over compensation for forced wartime labour.

The head of Japan’s Keidanren business lobby met with members of its South Korean counterpart, the Federation of Korean Industries, as well South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday morning.

Yoon is in Japan for the first visit by a South Korean president in 12 years. On Thursday Yoon and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised to turn the page on years of animosity over their countries’ difficult, share history.

The lack of cooperation between the two countries has long undercut U.S.-led efforts to present a united front against China and North Korea.

Signs of a breakthrough came last week when Seoul announced a plan for its companies to compensate former forced labourers.

The two business lobbies have agreed to launch foundations aimed at “future-oriented” bilateral relations.

(Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama and Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by David Dolan, Muralikumar Anantharaman and Gerry Doyle)