S. Korea, Japan on smooth course to replace ambassadors, source says

South Korea is expected to get Japan's formal diplomatic consent in the near future for its pick of Kang Chang-il, a former four-term lawmaker, as new ambassador to the neighboring country, an informed source said Tuesday.

In late November, President Moon Jae-in picked Kang as Seoul's new top envoy in Tokyo, saying his wide web of Japanese contacts will help improve bilateral relations badly frayed over wartime forced labor and Tokyo's export curbs.

But Japanese media reported that some ruling party lawmakers in Tokyo oppose Kang's appointment, citing his past acts that included his 2011 visit to the Kuril Islands at the center of a long-running territorial dispute between Japan and Russia.

The lawmakers also criticized Kang's claim in the past that the Japanese Emperor should be called a king, rather than an emperor.

The negative sentiment in Japan has spawned speculation that Tokyo is delaying the granting of diplomatic consent, known as "agreement", over the appointment of Kang.

A South Korean foreign ministry official said that the process is running "under a good atmosphere."

Seoul has decided to give consent for Tokyo's appointment of its new ambassador to Seoul, Koichi Aiboshi, who will replace Koji Tomita, according to a diplomatic source.

The issue over the ambassador-designates came amid concern that bilateral ties could further strain as the legal process in Seoul to sell off a Japanese firm's local assets to compensate victims of Japan's wartime forced labor took effect Tuesday.

Seoul's foreign ministry said it would continue to communicate with Tokyo in pursuit of a solution. (Yonhap)