With main opposition candidate Yoon Suk-yeol elected South Korea's next president, the country's relations with Japan are likely to improve once their long-stalled communications finally get rolling, but wartime history issues are likely to continue weighing on them, according to foreign policy experts.
Given Yoon's call for improved ties with Japan and the United States and the security dynamics sparked by Russia's aggression in Ukraine, he has been seen as a more favorable pick for Tokyo than ruling party hopeful Lee Jae-myung, who was seen as inheriting South Korean President Moon Jae-in's policy emphasis on North Korea.
Yoon of the conservative People Power Party has said he would visit Japan second after the United States once he becomes president, and resume so-called shuttle diplomacy with Tokyo with leaders making reciprocal visits — a practice stalled since 2011.