A new bilateral fisheries agreement was formed between Japan and South Korea early Friday morning after both sides stopped bickering and compromised on catch quotas and fishing zone boundaries, according to government officials.
The basic agreement was struck during a meeting attended by Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, Koko Sato, an LDP fisheries official, fisheries chief Shoichi Nakagawa, and South Korean fisheries minister Kim Sun Gil and Kim Bong Ho, the vice chairman of the South Korean National Assembly.
The bilateral talks began 28 months ago, and both sides were under pressure to strike a pact before the visit to Japan of South Korean President Kim Dae Jung, who is scheduled to stay for four days, beginning Oct. 7.