PARTIES CLASH OVER KOREA-JAPAN SUMMIT

[Anchor Lead]

Clashes between the ruling and opposition parties continues over the recent South Korea-Japan summit. The Democratic Party announced its intention to push for a parliamentary investigation, denouncing the summit as a 'diplomatic humiliation', while the People Power Party countered by calling for an end to nationalistic propaganda and instigation. It was belatedly confirmed that the government had protested against Japan's Foreign Minister's remarks, implying that there was no forced labor, at the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee.

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The Democratic Party announced that it will conduct a parliamentary investigation into the controversial compensation plan for wartime forced laborers and the recent South Korea-Japan summit.

[Soundbite] Park Hong-keun(Floor Leader, Democratic Party) : "We can never accept pro-Japanese diplomacy tantamount to the humiliating Korea-Japan treaty of 1905. The DP will follow people’s will and seriously consider holding a parliamentary investigation."

The People Power Party demanded the opposition party stop such actions, claiming that they're only looking after their political interests with anti-government propaganda and instigation.

[Soundbite] Sung Il-jong(PPP Policy Committee) : "Degrading S. Korea’s president as Yongsan governor-general is an insult to the nation and its people. The DP appears to be driven only by anti-Japanese sentiment."

At the subsequent meeting of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, the opposition camp demanded to know whether the issues concerning Dokdo Islets, wartime sex slaves, and seafood products from Fukushima were discussed at the summit.

[Soundbite] Kim Sang-hee(Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee Member (DP)) : "How can they so shamelessly say such things to our president?"

[Soundbite] Park Jin(Minister of Foreign affairs) : "As I told you before, Dokdo islets or comfort women issue was not discussed at the summit. Who would you believe? Japanese or the S. Korean gov’t?"

The ruling bloc struck back at the opposition party's criticism, saying that the current administration provided solutions when the previous government had failed to do so.

[Soundbite] Chung Jin-suk(Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee Member (PPP)) : "The Moon Jae-in administration put it on the operating table and opened it for surgery, but closed it again without doing anything."

It was belatedly revealed that the Korean government had protested the Japanese foreign minister's remark that essentially denied the existence of forced labor during World War II.

[Soundbite] Park Jin(Minister of Foreign affairs) : "S. Korea cannot understand it or accept it. We expressed our protest and regret about the remark."

Opposition lawmakers claimed the government overturning the Supreme Court's decision constitutes grounds for presidential impeachment. But Minister Park Jin countered that by saying making political decisions is not grounds for impeachment and the opposition's actions are personal attack and defamation.