S. Korea likely to propose talks with Japan on 'comfort women' this week

South Korea plans to propose talks with Japan this week to discuss the issue of Tokyo's sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II, officials said Tuesday, an issue that could emerge as a new thorn in relations between the two countries. The move comes after the Constitutional Court ruled late last month that it is unconstitutional for Seoul to take no specific action to settle the dispute with Tokyo over its refusal to compensate the victims forced to serve Japan's military. "We are considering proposing official bilateral talks after the Chuseok holidays," a government official said on condition of anonymity. "If we do make a proposal, it will be delivered through diplomatic channels, such as the Japanese Embassy in Seoul or the Korean embassy in Japan." The issue of the former sex slaves, euphemistically called "comfort women," is one of the most emotional unresolved issues between South Korea and Japan. The Korean Peninsula was a Japanese colony from 1910-45. Japan has refused to compensate the victims, claiming that all issues regarding the colonial rule were settled in a 1965 package compensation deal the two countries reached while normalizing diplomatic relations. The ties between Seoul and Tokyo have often frayed over issues stemming from the colonial rule, including Japan's territorial claims to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo or its attempt to gloss over wartime atrocities.