UPDATE - Outgoing Japanese premier calls for strengthening ties with South Korea

UPDATE- CHANGES HL, DECK, ADDED MORE DETAIL OF MEETING BETWEEN TWO LEADERS

By Riyaz ul Khaliq and Islamuddin Sajid

ISTANBUL (AA) - Japan's outgoing Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday called for strengthening ties with South Korea, local media reported.

Kishida and President Yoon Suk Yeol met in South Korean capital Seoul and discussed regional issues, including bilateral ties between the two countries.

"I expressed my heartfelt sorrow for the immense hardships and sorrow so many people endured in the difficult circumstances of the past," Yonhap News quoted Kishida as saying.

Kishida assured Yoon the new government in Japan will uphold the position of previous administrations.

Amid tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the two leaders expressed their commitment to strengthening coordination between Tokyo and Seoul in the wake of increasing military ties between North Korea and Russia.

"It is important to maintain the positive momentum of bilateral cooperation that Prime Minister Kishida and I have built to advance bilateral cooperation, as well as cooperation between Korea, the US and Japan," Yoon said, adding that the two countries should take a "forward-looking attitude" to address challenging issues.

During the summit, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation for emergencies in third countries was signed to facilitate joint efforts in evacuating citizens from conflict zones and information sharing between the two nations.

Kishida is in Seoul on a two-day trip for his last summit with President Yoon.

It is the 12th summit between the two leaders since Kishida was elected to office in 2021.

This could possibly be the last meeting between Kishida and Yoon as the Japanese prime minister would be stepping down later this month when the country’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party elects its new leader on Sept. 27.

Historically at odds over Japan’s colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula, Tokyo and Seoul have, however, improved relations in recent years.

Ahead of his two-day trip to South Korea, Kishida said his discussions with Yoon will also review “further development of bilateral relations” as the two nations mark the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations next year.

Yoon visited Tokyo in March, after the two sides resumed "shuttle diplomacy" last year for the first time in 12 years.