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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung (left) and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi make a joint press statement following their summit in Nara, Japan, on Jan. 13, 2026. (Kim Tae-hyeong/Hankyoreh)

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi reached an agreement Tuesday on humanitarian cooperation on areas relating to historical matters, including the joint pursuit of DNA testing for the remains of victims of the 1942 Chosei undersea coal mine disaster.

The efforts suggest that the two sides’ new tack of collaboration on the most approachable of the sensitive historical issues between them may be bearing fruit.

Lee shared a concrete explanation of the agreement on historical matters in a joint press announcement made just after his summit with Takaichi that day.

“In 1942, there was an accident at the Chosei coal mine in Ube, Japan, in which 183 Koreans and Japanese were drowned, and their remains were only discovered last August, around 80 years after the fact,” he said.

“Our two sides [South Korea and Japan] have agreed to pursue DNA testing to verify the identities of the victims, and we plan to have working-level discussions between authorities on specific areas,” he added.

In the joint press announcement that afternoon, Takaichi said, “I also welcome the progress being made in Japan-ROK coordination toward cooperation on DNA testing with regard to the remains discovered at the Chosei coal mine in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture.”

While South Korea and Japan have held five summits since Lee took office in June of last year, this represented their leaders’ first agreement yet on cooperation in an area related to their countries’ shared history. 

Discussions on historical issues were not included on the agenda when Lee met with then-Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba during a visit to Japan in August.

“While past discussions on historical issues have typically been vertically oriented in terms of South Korea making victim-centered arguments demanding apologies and compensation from Japan, their emphasis with the Chosei coal mine [disaster] — in which both Korean and Japanese nationals were drowned — was on humanitarian cooperation for the sake of all victims,” explained Kim Suk-hyun, a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Strategy.

“This represents a different approach to historical issues [compared with past South Korean administrations],” she observed.

During the Japanese occupation of Korea, a disaster occurred on Feb. 3, 1942, at the Chosei coal mine, which extended under the sea from the coastal area of Tokonami in Ube. Seawater leaking into the mine claimed the lives of 136 Koreans and 47 Japanese who were working there at the time.

After some of the remains were unearthed in August, Japanese civic groups called on the South Korean and Japanese governments to support the process of further exhumation and verification of surviving family members. To date, the Japanese government has shied away from cooperation, citing safety concerns among other matters.

The latest agreement between leaders suggests the investigation into the Chosei coal mine victims is poised to pick up momentum on both sides.

While the mine issue provided the two administrations with an entree to discussions on historical issues, signs suggest the two sides hold differing views on its significance.

Lee stated, “I think that it is meaningful that we have been able to achieve small but significant progress on historical issues through this summit.” His remarks indicated that he viewed the development as signifying progress on historical matters at a more general level.

In contrast, Takaichi emphasized the significance of the two sides’ cooperation, specifically on the issue of DNA testing. Observers read this as an attempt to forestall the possibility of discussions expanding to include other historical matters.

On the same day, the two sides pledged to undertake a joint response to address transnational crimes such as online scams.

By Jang Ye-ji, staff reporter; Hong Seock-jae, Tokyo correspondent

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