Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi urged South Korea on Tuesday not to let soured bilateral relations deteriorate further, following the approval of junior high school history textbooks that Seoul says distort Japan's colonialist past.
"There is a gap between the Japanese and South Korean positions," Koizumi said at his official residence. "Any country could face criticism, but it is not good to let confrontation heighten because of that."
Koizumi made the comments after South Korea protested the newly authorized history textbooks, which are accused of "justifying and beautifying" Japan's imperialist past.