ROK president calls for talks to end trade row with Japan

SEOUL - Moon Jae-in, president of the Republic of Korea, on Thursday offered an olive branch to Japan to end an ongoing trade dispute, saying Seoul will "gladly join hands" if Tokyo wants to talk.

Moon in a nationally televised speech also downplayed the threat posed by Pyongyang's recent short-range ballistic launches and expressed hope that Washington and Pyongyang would soon resume nuclear negotiations. He also vowed to build a peace economy on the Korean Peninsula with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea through dialogue and cooperation.

The denuclearization talks between the DPRK and the United States have been stalled, but the working-level talks between the two sides would be resumed in the near future after top DPRK leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump met at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom in June, he said.

"Despite a series of worrying actions taken by North Korea (DPRK) recently, the momentum for dialogue remains unshaken," he added.

In reference to Japan, Moon said: "If a country weaponizes a sector where it has a comparative advantage, the order of peaceful free trade inevitably suffers. A country that accomplished growth first must not kick the ladder away while others are following in its footsteps."

"Better late than never: If Japan chooses the path of dialogue and cooperation, we will gladly join hands," he said.

Moon was speaking at a ceremony marking the 74th anniversary of the Korean Peninsula's liberation from Japanese rule at the end of World War II. His remarks came amid heightened public anger and diplomatic fallout over Tokyo's recent moves to impose trade curbs on the ROK.

Seoul has accused Tokyo of weaponizing trade to target its export-dependent economy and retaliate against ROK court rulings calling for Japanese companies to offer reparations to ROK citizens forced into labor during World War II. Tokyo's measures struck a nerve in the ROK, where many still harbor resentment over Japan's ruthless colonial rule during 1910-45.

After threatening stern countermeasures and declaring that Seoul would "never lose" to Tokyo again, Moon has taken a more conciliatory tone over the past week as there was relief in Seoul that the impact of Japan's trade measures might not be as bad as initially thought.

There have also been concerns that the government's nationalistic calls for unity were allowing public anger toward Japan to reach dangerous levels.

Nevertheless, tens of thousands of people were expected join anti-Japan protests planned for Thursday, including an evening candle-lit vigil near Seoul's presidential palace.

Thousands of protesters dressed in raincoats marched in heavy rain toward the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. They carried signs that said "Apologize for War Crimes" and "Compensate Forced Laborers".

"I have a lot that I want to say, but I can't," said an emotional Lee Chun-sik, 95, the only survivor among four plaintiffs who won a landmark compensation case in October against Japan's Nippon Steel& Sumitomo Metal Corp, decades after being forced to work at the company's steel mills during World War II.

Lee thanked the marchers for taking part.

Yang Geum-deuk, 90, said she was given barely any food and often beaten by Japanese authorities for not quickly using the bathroom while at Mitsubishi.

"We Koreans were treated as animals," Yang said, showing a banner saying "No Abe, No Mitsubishi". "But we're strong now ... and my wish is to hear a word of apology from Abe, as the world knows how we suffered in Japan."

Agencies - Xinhua