Leaders from Japan and South Korea vow better ties following summit

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, center, leaves after meeting with business leaders at a hotel in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, May 8, 2023. (AP)

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday called for officials to map out specific steps to hasten security and economic cooperation with Japan following his weekend summit in Seoul with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Kishida during Sunday's meeting expressed sympathy toward Koreans forced into industrial slavery during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula as the leaders vowed to overcome historical grievances and strengthen cooperation in the face of a nuclear North Korea and other challenges.