SEOUL — South Korea’s foreign ministry urged Japan to implement its commitments related to a war-linked gold mine, local broadcaster MBC said Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025.
The foreign ministry said in a statement that Tokyo failed to fully implement the decision of the Unesco World Heritage Committee. The ministry said Tokyo did not honor commitments to reflect the entire history of the Sado Island Gold Mines. The site is associated with forced labor from the Korean Peninsula during the Japanese colonial period.
The statement urged Tokyo to faithfully implement the decision, its commitments and agreements between the two countries. Ministry officials said Seoul will continue to talk with Tokyo about follow-up measures.
South Korea agreed to list the gold mine as a Unesco World Heritage Site in July 2024. In exchange, Japan promised to display the entire history of the site, including the forced mobilization of Koreans.
Seoul claimed that no mention of the forced labor victims was made at the site.
South Korean historians say Imperial Japan forced thousands of Koreans into heavy labor at the gold mine. The site was turned into facilities to manufacture war-related materials during World War II. The mine was shut down in 1989. / XINHUA