Seoul to Make All Diplomatic Efforts to Tackle Japanese Textbook IssueSouth Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Han Seung-soo Tuesday said Seoul will make all possible diplomatic efforts to tackle the Japanese textbook issue to placate public indignation in the country.Before the National Assembly (parliament) Unification and Foreign Affairs-Trade committee, Han said Japan's distorting history textbooks are an issue that shakes the very foundation of South Korean-Japanese relations and reopens old wounds. "The government fully sympathizes with the public's anger and will work out effective measures to cope with the issue without ever tolerating Japan's history distortions," Han said. South Korean Ambassador to Japan Choi Sang-yong, who has been recalled, will convey South Korean people's indignation to the Japanese government and help find ways to correct the distortions, he said. The minister added that the South Korean government will also seek cooperation with academic, social and press circles and international organizations to tackle the issue. The Japanese government approved eight middle school textbooks early this month which beautify Japan's wartime atrocities last century. The Japanese approval has caused great indignation from people of all walks of life in South Korea. The South Korean government, parliament and political parties have issued statements, accusing the Japanese government of approving the distorting history textbooks. |
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