Yoon apologizes to Korean atomic bombing victims in Japan

Diplomacy

Published: 19 May. 2023, 23:00 Updated: 21 May. 2023, 17:20

Yoon apologizes to Korean atomic bombing victims in Japan

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, meets with a Korean victim of the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima at a hotel in Hiroshima, Japan, Friday. He became the first Korean president to meet with a group of Korean bombing victims during his trip to Hiroshima for the Group of 7 summit. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Yoon Suk Yeol met with a group of Korean victims of the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima and apologized that Korea was not with them through their suffering during a visit to Japan on Friday for the Group of Seven (G7) summit.

“I come as the president representing the government and the country, and I sincerely apologize for not being able to be with our country at the scene where our compatriots were suffering such sorrow and pain,” Yoon told the victims. “Once again, I would like to express my deepest consolation to you all.”

He became the first Korean president to meet with the Korean victims of the bombing, which took place toward the end of the 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule over Korea.

On Aug. 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and another one on Nagasaki three days later. Some 30,000 Koreans, many of them who were in Japan as wartime forced laborers, were killed in Hiroshima during the bombing.

“When our compatriots were bombed, we were under colonial rule, and after liberation and gaining independence, our country was powerless and faced difficulties because of communist invasion,” Yoon said. “As a result, our compatriots suffered hardships and pain in a foreign country, and the Korean government and state were not by your side.

Yoon further extended an invitation for the victims to visit Korea in the near future in a meeting with some 20 bombing victims and their descendants to see the changes and advancements in their home country.

The meeting is a part of Yoon's continued efforts to “resolve historical issues while at the same time pursuing a better future for the two countries,” presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon said in a briefing Friday.

Yoon and first lady Kim Keon-hee arrived in Hiroshima earlier that day for a three-day trip for the G7 Summit and a series of bilateral meetings.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, shakes hands with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during a bilateral summit at a hotel in Hiroshima, Japan, on Friday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Also on Friday, Yoon held bilateral summits with the leaders of Australia and Vietnam on the sidelines of the G7 meeting.

Yoon and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese agreed to increase cooperation in the defense and arms industries and minerals for the development of high-tech industries, according to the presidential office.

In the summit with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Yoon focused on the growing economic cooperation, expressing hope that the two countries will work together to reach the goal of $150 billion in bilateral trade by 2030.

Yoon noted that Vietnam was Korea's third-largest trading partner behind China and the United States last year.

He said there are 8,000 Korean companies operating in Vietnam that “support the close economic cooperation relationship between our two countries,” said his office.

Yoon is also scheduled to hold bilateral talks with the leaders of India, Indonesia, Britain and Japan during the trip.

South Korea was one of eight guest countries invited by Japan to attend the G7 leaders' summit, alongside Australia, Brazil, Comoros, the Cook Islands, India, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Yoon is also scheduled to visit the monument for Korean atomic bomb victims at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, shakes hands with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at their summit in Hiroshima on Friday. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]