South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun said on Wednesday that the South Korea-Japan shuttle summit will not likely resume until Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi drops his controversial pilgrimages to the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.

"The meaning of the visit to the shrine doesn't become objective simply because Prime Minister Koizumi explains it," Roh said, apparently responding to the Japanese leader's recent remarks defending his visits to the shrine. Japanese war dead, including some class-A war criminals of World War II, are honored at the shrine.

In a press conference earlier this month, Koizumi called his pilgrimage to the shrine a "matter of heart," adding that he cannot understand why foreign governments make it a diplomatic issue.

Roh, however, said that the meaning those visits have for South Koreans should be considered as well. The Japanese government should be able to see the issue objectively, he said.

Speaking diplomatically, he also added that the reason other Asian nations, including South Korea and China, feel discomfort over the visits is one that "everyone can guess." Japan had a record of aggression and colonial power wielding in the early 20th century.

Roh also made it clear that he has no intention of compromising on the issue, saying, "Compromises without principle" can last only temporarily.

When mentioning the difficulty of resolving an issue from the past, Roh said he believes there are good precedents from similar cases in the world's history, and that they seem to have been settled as a universal procedure.

The president said that the issue is not about severing bilateral relations altogether.

"I think that diplomacy that responds, demands, protests and rejects within the relations is necessary," he said, indicating that Seoul's stance of flexibly dealing with Japan on a case-by-case basis will remain unchanged.

Roh, however, stressed that the government would "do its best" to carry through on its "just demand" concerning the shrine visits.

Source: Agencies