S. Korea-Japan summit difficult before resolving Yasukuni dispute

SEOUL, Jan. 16 Kyodo

South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Ban Ki Moon said Monday that until a row over Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo is resolved, holding a summit between the South Korean and Japanese leader would be difficult.

Ban also told a group of Japanese reporters that a summit is unlikely even after Koizumi steps down from office if his successor pays homage at the Shinto shrine.

Japanese and South Korean leaders began engaging in ''shuttle diplomacy'' in July 2004, meeting twice a year in each country in an informal atmosphere.

The two nations had initially agreed on arranging talks between Koizumi and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun in Japan by the end of last year. The summit, however, did not materialize because South Korea is angered by Koizumi's repeated visits to the shrine.

Both South Korea and China have been vocal in protesting Koizumi's visits to the Shinto shrine which honors convicted Japanese war criminals along with the war dead.

Koizumi last visited the shrine on Oct. 17, despite repeated protests from South Korea and China.

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