S. Korea Reopening to School Trips from Japan; 37 Students Visit

Jiji Press

9:30 JST, March 22, 2023

SEOUL (Jiji Press) — South Korea is reopening to school trips from Japan that have been suspended since 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thirty-seven students from Luther Senior High School in Kumamoto were to visit South Korea for five days from Tuesday, South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Monday.

Those students will visit the southwestern city of Jeonju and Seoul. In Jeonju, they will have a chance to interact with students from a sister school.

The trip is the start of building future-oriented relations between Japan and South Korea, South Korean Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Park Bo-gyoon said.

The ministry plans to revitalize school trips from Japan and interschool exchanges between the two countries, as signs of improved ties emerged after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo last week.

In the first half of this year, the ministry is set to launch campaigns in major cities in Japan and invite 100 Japanese junior and senior high school teachers to South Korea this summer.

Yoon told officials Monday to make all possible efforts to ensure that the public feel the effects of improved ties with Japan.