한일역사갈등의 전후사: 위안부문제를 중심으로

Abstract

This article examines the changes and continuity of postwar Japan’s positions over Korea-Japan conflicts on history. First, it gives an overview of Korea-Japan relations in postwar years, focusing on the conflicts over historical issues. With the introduction that the basic positions of postwar Japan on Korea over historical issues are formed by three components, that is, firstly, acknowledging the importance of Korea-Japan relations, secondly, adopting the dual approach dividing political issues from economic ones to minimize the controversies and conflicts with Korea, and thirdly, however, maintaining Japan’s positions over historical issues such as Japan’s arguments over Dokto Islets and others, this article argues that postwar Japan’s paradigm has been changed in the post-Cold War years. For the reasons it suggests the impacts of changes international situations such as the collapse of Cold War and the rise of China, Japan’s declining economy along with Korea’s upgraded economy, and the role of conservative civic groups such as ‘Nihon Kaigi’. Second, it looks over the case of comfort women, in which it also argues that we can find the same pattern of changing Japan’s positions over the last twenty years.