Kim talks with Japanese Prince

Kim talks with Japanese Prince

SOUTH KOREA: President Kim Dae-jung held talks with a cousin of the Japanese emperor on Thursday in a symbolic move to improve often strained relations between Japan and its former colony.

Prince Takamado's and Princess Hisako's trip to attend Friday's World Cup opening ceremony in Seoul was the first official visit to South Korea by a member of the Japanese Imperial family since World War II.

"I hope the royal couple's visit will strengthen the cooperation and friendship between South Korea and Japan and lead to a successful World Cup," Kim said on the eve of the opening ceremony and match in Seoul.

Japan and South Korea co-host this year's World Cup finals, which close in Japan's Yokohama on June 30.

The visit is seen as a symbol of rapprochement between the Japan and South Korea, where many people still have bitter memories of Japan's 1910-1945 occupation of the Korean peninsula. --Reuters