Japanese official in Seoul ahead of ministerial talks

A senior Japanese official traveled to South Korea on Friday to fine-tune agenda items for the upcoming foreign ministers' talks on mending ties over shared history, Yonhap news agency reported.

Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Shinsuke Sugiyama met with South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong.

"They largely discussed such technical issues as the agenda and the schedule in preparation for Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se's plan to visit Japan," a Foreign Ministry official told reporters on background. "In a big frame, agenda items have been set."

Yun will fly to Tokyo on Sunday afternoon for talks with his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, and a local event to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties.

It will be their first one-on-one meeting since they met in Seoul in March. It will mark Yun's first visit to Japan as Seoul's top diplomat.

Yun is also pushing for a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

"But no exact schedule has been set yet due to Abe's busy schedule related to the handling of security-related legislation in the Diet," the official said.

Yun plans to return home on Monday night after attending the anniversary ceremony hosted by the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo, in which Abe plans to deliver a congratulatory message through his envoy.

President Park Geun-hye will also have her own message read out by a senior government official during a separate reception to be hosted by the Japanese Embassy here on Monday.