S Korea urges action on textbook row

Makiko Tanaka (L), talks to South Korean Foreign Minister, Han Seung-soo

SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea has told Japan to take "visible" steps to resolve a bitter dispute over Japanese history textbooks which critics say gloss over Tokyo's wartime aggression.

In a meeting in Beijing with Japanese Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka, South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Han Seung-soo also tacitly warned Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi not to visit a war shrine.

Tanaka stopped short of pledging to take any concrete steps to resolve the textbook issue, Reuters reported.

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"Our government is taking the issue seriously, and the education ministry is examining the textbooks sincerely and carefully," Tanaka was quoted as saying.

The ministers were in Beijing to attend the two-day Asia-Europe meeting that ended on Friday.

History textbooks approved by the Japanese government in April sparked diplomatic disputes with both South Korea and China.

Both South Korea and China want revisions to the textbooks.

"We want the Japanese side to make special efforts to take visible measures including revisions to the textbooks," a Japanese official quoted Han as telling Tanaka.

Seoul says history textbooks justify Japan's invasion of much of Asia in the early 20th century and fails to explain the plight of over 100,000 "comfort women," most of them from the Korean peninsula, forced to provide sex to Japanese troops during World War Two.

No concrete pledge

Japanese officials have said revisions could be made only if factual errors were found. Koizumi has said Japan would make no changes.

Tanaka, making her overseas diplomatic debut in Beijing, reiterated that Japan has said the textbooks do not represent the government's official view of history.

"On the textbook issue, my heart truly aches," the outspoken Tanaka told Han.

War shrine

Ties were further strained last week when Japan Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told the parliament of plans to visit a Tokyo war shrine.

Han warned against Koizumi's plans to pay homage to Yasukuni Shrine, which commemorates Japan's 2.6 million war dead since the 19th century.

"We want him to take into account (the feelings of) Asian neighbors to deal with the issue," Han said.

At Saturday's talks, the Japanese and South Korean foreign ministers agreed that Washington, Tokyo and Seoul should continue to coordinating their policies on North Korea, a Japanese official said.

Reuters contributed to this report.