FOCUS: Japan conservatives may impede ties with S. Korea despite PM's visit

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's first visit to South Korea since taking office in October 2021 underscored that bilateral ties have recovered from their lowest level in decades, but conservatives in Japan may hinder further progress.With the security environment deteriorating in East Asia amid North Korea's nuclear and missile threat, Yoon Suk Yeol, who became South Korean president in May 2022, has been trying to achieve reconciliation with Japan despite backlash at home.Kishida has also extended an olive branch to Seoul before the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima later this month, as the…READ FULL ARTICLE