BUSAN, Nov 18: South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun on Friday lashed out at Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi for his visits to a war shrine, describing them as ‘provocation’ to Seoul.

The two leaders held a 30-minute ‘serious’ meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum summit.

“The visits of you, Prime Minister, to Yasukuni Shrine as well as recent visits there by many politicians, are a provocation to South Korea,” Mr Roh was quoted by a Japanese government official as telling Mr Koizumi.

Ties between Japan and South Korea, a colony of Japan from 1910 to 1945, have been strained by Mr Koizumi’s controversial visits to the shrine.

A territorial dispute over islands known as Dokdo to Koreans and Takashima to the Japanese has also inflamed passions, as well as new Japanese history textbooks which Seoul says gloss over Japan’s past militarism.

“We are concerned that Japan may return to the ways of the past,” said Roh, who grudgingly agreed to meet Koizumi to show courtesy to a guest.

At the opening session, Roh accepted Koizumi’s handshake hesitantly before the two turned and managed strained smiles for the cameras.

Defying his neighbours’ anger, Mr Koizumi last month went ahead with a fifth visit since taking office to the shrine, which honours 2.5 million Japanese war dead including 14 top war criminals from World War II.

“At today’s summit, President Roh said Japan’s position on the issues of the Yasukuni shrine, history education and Dokdo island is just unacceptable,” said an aide to Roh.—AFP