金鍾泌 전 국무총리와 나카소네 전 일본 총리는 지난 3일 일본 도쿄 經團連 홀에서 열린 韓日수교 40주년 기념 강연회에서 고이즈미 수상의 야스쿠니 神社참배를, 韓中日의 우호와 국익에 해롭다면서 중단해야 한다고 주장했다. 요미우리 신문사 주최로 열린 이 강연회에서 金 전 총리는 일본이 전쟁을 하지 않는 한 獨島를 가져갈 수 없으므로 이 섬에 대한 영유권 주장을 포기해야 하며 그럴 수 없다면 이 문제를 분쟁거리로 만들어선 안될 것이라고 말했다.
나카소네 전 총리는 '한 국가의 역사관이나 영토문제는 바꾸기가 힘들기 때문에 시간이 해결하도록 하는 것이 좋다'고 말했다.
----------------------------


Nakasone, Kim: End Yasukuni visits



The Daily Yomiuri

Former prime ministers of Japan and South Korea said Friday that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi should stop visiting Yasukuni Shrine, trips that South Korea and China strongly object to because Class-A war criminals are enshrined there.

Former South Korean Prime Minister Kim Jong Pil said at a special lecture meeting held by the Yomiuri International Economic Society at Keidanren Hall in Tokyo that the time might be ripe for the Japanese government to decide whether a prime minister should stop visiting the Tokyo-based shrine or that the names of Class-A war criminals be disenshrined and enshrined elsewhere.

'If they are left as they are, ill will on the part of South Korea and China [against Japan] will never ease,' Kim said in his speech at the meeting to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties between Japan and South Korea.

Former Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone, said during a question-and-answer session at the same meeting that Koizumi should stop visiting Yasukuni Shrine in light of Japan's national interest.

'I understand the prime minister visits the shrine out of his personal beliefs,' Nakasone said. 'However, a prime minister should also think how his conduct will affect the national interest...As separate enshrinement of Class-A war criminals will take time, I think it would be an admirable political decision to stop visiting the shrine.'

Both men also said the sovereignty of Takeshima island, known as Tokdo in South Korea, should not be allowed to damage ties between the two countries.

Kim said Japan would never be able to obtain the group of rocky islets unless it started a war against South Korea because his country strongly believed it was part of its territory.

Since it would be unwise for both countries to fight a war over it, the Japanese government should withdraw its territorial claim over the group of islets, Kim suggested.

'If it can't do so, I hope the Japanese government will at least recognize South Korea's effective control of Tokdo and shelve it as an unsolved issue between the two countries,' he said.

Nakasone said it might be impossible for a country to change its opinion over historical matters or territorial disputes.

'When we have disputes over such matters, it's politically wise to let time solve them,' he said.