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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (center left) talks with ROK President Moon Jae-in (center right) ahead of the ASEAN+3 summit in Nonthaburi, Thailand, November 4, 2019. /AP Photo

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Monday that the Republic of Korea (ROK) was his country's "most important neighbor" and that the two shared basic values as he took a conciliatory tone toward Seoul which has been locked in a bitter row with Tokyo for over a year.

The comment came after ROK President Moon Jae-in last week proposed that the two countries work together to resolve the issue of wartime forced labor. He also called Japan "our closest neighbor."

The remarks follow some fence-mending steps in recent months, including Seoul's reversal of its decision to scrap an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan, and Tokyo's partial easing of curbs on the export of high-tech materials to the ROK.

"Under an increasingly severe security environment in Northeast Asia, diplomacy with neighboring countries is extremely important," Abe told parliament in a policy speech.

"Essentially, South Korea (the ROK) is the most important neighbor with which Japan shares basic values and strategic interests," he said.

In a parliamentary speech in October, Abe simply referred to the ROK as an "important neighbor."

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (C) speaks as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R) and ROK President Moon Jae-in look on at a joint press conference during their trilateral leaders' meeting in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, December 24, 2019. /AP Photo

A protester holds an image of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a rally denouncing Abe and also demanding that the ROK abolish an intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan, in Seoul, ROK, August 15, 2019. /AP Photo

Abe-Moon handshake in China

Abe and Moon met for about 45 minutes on the sidelines of the

China-Japan-ROK leaders' meeting

on December 24 in Chengdu in southwest China. They confirmed their differences on the wartime labor issue but agreed to resolve the dispute via dialogue.

Moon expressed hopes for an early resolution of their differences. "Japan and South Korea (the ROK) are historically and culturally the closest neighbors," he said. "We're not in a relationship that can set the two apart even when there's some discomfort for a while."

Abe said at a press conference that he has relayed Japan's position on the wartime labor issue to Moon, adding it is ROK's responsibility to come up with measures that would resolve the disputes.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and ROK President Moon Jae-in attend a meeting in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, December 24, 2019. /Reuters Photo

The mood of the discussion was tense at times but not confrontational, according to Japan's Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Naoki Okada.

The two leaders also urged the resumption of talks between Pyongyang and Washington that have been largely deadlocked since a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi in February 2019.

(With input from Reuters)

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