Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se called on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday to clearly uphold his predecessors' apologies for Japan's colonial rule of Korea, saying his war anniversary statement this week will be a "touchstone" of bilateral ties.
  

Abe is expected to issue a statement Friday marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, which coincides with Korea's liberation from 35 years of Japanese colonial rule.
  

Amid strained ties caused by various disputes over their shared history, the statement has been cited as one of several factors their relations will hinge on.
  

"The Abe statement will be a touchstone for the future improvement of bilateral ties in a historical year that marks 70 years since the end of the war and 50 years since the normalization of relations between South Korea and Japan," Yun said in his congratulatory remarks in the opening ceremony of the Center for Japanese Studies in southern Seoul.
  

"Our government has repeatedly called for the statement to express in clear terms the statements of past Cabinets, including the Murayama statement, and the historical perception contained in them," he said. "In such an event, it would provide a great momentum for the positive development of bilateral relations." (Yonhap)