[KVOLUTION]

By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter

Japan's opposition leader said Friday that Seoul and Tokyo should make more efforts to build confidence to improve their bilateral partnership, saying he understands why Koreans harbor anger toward Japanese nationalists.

Yukio Hatoyama said he would not visit the Yasukuni Shrine, which houses war criminals responsible for atrocities during World War II, as he fully understands the bad feelings here about the Japanese colonial period.

Hatoyama, head of Japan's largest opposition Democratic Party, expressed these views during a meeting with President Lee Myung-bak and National Assembly Speaker Kim Hyung-o in Seoul, sources said.

He arrived in Seoul early Friday and left for Tokyo after meeting Lee.

Hatoyama is emerging as one of the top candidates to become Japan's next prime minister, replacing Taro Aso, whose public approval rating has remained low.

With Japan's general election due by October, Hatoyama's party is leading Aso's Liberal Democratic Party by more than 10 percentage points in polls.

South Korea is the first foreign country the opposition leader has visited since he became the chairman of the Democratic Party last month.

Officials here said Hatoyama came to discuss North Korea's nuclear and missile tests, economic ties between Seoul and Tokyo and ways to promote regional cooperation.

``It is quite significant that Hatoyama chose South Korea, instead of the United States or a European country, for his first overseas trip since becoming the head of his party,'' a Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson said. ``It shows he will focus on improving relations with Asian countries.''

Some analysts said he visited Seoul to discuss post-Aso relations between Korea and Japan amid growing tension over North Korea's nuclear provocation.

During his meetings with Lee and Kim, Hatoyama expressed his views on historic relations between Korea and Japan and the proposed bilateral free trade agreement (FTA).

In an interview with JoongAng Ilbo, published Friday, he said he would push for the Korea-Japan FTA to seek a win-win partnership for both Korean and Japanese industries.

``Many Japanese are concerned that a Korea-Japan FTA will hit Japan's agriculture industry, while Koreans are worried about the negative impact on manufacturing businesses. But we should move talks forward,'' Hatoyama said.

He said he would avoid an emotional approach when dealing with disputes with Korea and China and instead seek solutions through dialogue.

President Lee has emphasized a ``future-oriented'' relationship with Japan and has been reluctant to take issue with Japan's alleged historical distortions, unlike his predecessors.

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