When Wendy Sherman, undersecretary for political affairs at the U.S. State Department, during a speech on relations between the U.S. and Korea, China, and Japan last month said, “To move ahead, we have to see beyond what was to envision what might be,” she was chiding Korea and China for not improving ties with Japan.

Of course, Koreans would like to envision the future possibilities. But how do two nations ― one a former colony and the other a harsh and brutal colonizer ― begin to think about the future together when there is no reconciliation?

Korea-Japan relations have never been smooth, the degree of warmth ― or rather chilliness ― varying depending on who happens to be in power in the two countries. President Park Geun-hye clashed head-on with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, maintaining that there would be no improvement in relations unless the issue of the wartime Japanese military sexual slavery was resolved. Meanwhile, Abe seeks to “revise” Japan’s wartime history, including a denial of Japanese government’s involvement in the operation of the military brothel system. Needless to say, bilateral relations are icy.

In January 2013, Abe told the parliament that as a prime minister, he would refrain from making further remarks on the issue of reviewing the Kono Statement of 1993 which officially acknowledged that women were forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military. He also said that he would stand by the official stances of his predecessors on the issue, going back on his previous statement that he wanted to review the Kono Statement. But, he went back on his words once again, and the Abe administration commissioned a panel to review the Kono Statement after all.

In February 2014, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that Japan was considering revising its apology to former military sex slaves, which led to a strong protest from Park. In March 2014, under U.S. pressure, Abe changed his mind, yet again, saying that there would be no review of the Kono Statement.

In June 2014, the Kono Statement review panel said that the facts used to draw up the statement were correct and that there were no plans to change it. However, it also said that the statement was a byproduct of diplomatic negotiations, drafted under pressure from Korea. It is yet another thinly veiled attempt to deny the existence of Japanese military sex slaves, 53 of whom survive in Korea.

Abe has, in fact, been consistent in his attempt to deny the existence of Japanese military sex slaves. In 2007, during Abe’s first stint as prime minister, his Cabinet retracted part of the Kono Statement concerning government involvement in military sexual slavery. Abe was forced to apologize when U.S. President George W. Bush forced his hand.

The denial of wartime military sexual slavery is part of Abe’s broader attempt to revise history. In April 2013 Abe told the Diet that he does not uphold the Murayama Statement of 1995, arguing that there could be different definitions of the term “aggression.” The landmark statement admitted that Japan “caused tremendous damage and suffering … through its colonial rule and aggression.” Under heavy criticism, Abe claimed that the administration upholds the Murayama statement in general.

Looking at just some of Japan’s vacillations on the issue of apology over military sex slavery and wartime aggression, is it any wonder that Koreans find Japan’s apologies less than credible?

Yet, it is no secret that some Japanese complain of “apology fatigue”: “How many times do we need to apologize? Do we need to grovel on our hands and knees?” they ask.

For a lesson on apology, Japan could look to Germany. Chancellor Willy Brandt knelt before the Ghetto uprising memorial in 1970. And this was neither the first nor the last expression of apology and acceptance of responsibility by Germany for its role in World War II. Soon after the war’s end, Germany set about to reconcile with its neighbors, apologize to the Holocaust victims and make restitutions, and vigorously hunt down war criminals, all of which continue to this day.

During a lecture in Tokyo this week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel reminded Japan to look squarely at history. “Without big gestures by our neighbors” reconciliation would not have been possible, she said, adding “there was the acceptance in Germany to call things by their name.” At a news conference, Merkel said that settling wartime history is “a prerequisite for reconciliation.” In a meeting with the head of Japan’s main opposition party, Merkel urged Japan to resolve the issue of military sex slaves properly.

Merkel’s comments, which come ahead of Abe’s statement marking the 70th anniversary of end of World War II to be issued in August, ought to remind Japan of what needs to be done before there can be any talk of the future. The Abe administration’s attempts to whitewash history will ultimately undermine its standing in the international community. At a time when the military sex slavery issue is seen as a human rights issue and the global trend is to recognize and condemn past human rights abuses, trying to deny the egregious violations of the rights of former military sex slaves invites international condemnation.

Abe’s attempts to revise Japan’s wartime history is clearly not in Japan’s national interests. The choice is entirely up to Abe ― whether to settle the past and move on or rob Japan of the possibility of the future by denying history. In his August speech, he has a chance to issue a definitive, unequivocal apology that could start the long overdue process of reconciliation in the region. A positive note was sounded on Monday when the deputy chief of the 16-member panel advising Abe on his statement told a symposium, “I want Mr. Abe to say, ‘Japan committed aggression (against China).’”

The world awaits Abe’s choice.

By Kim Hoo-ran 

Kim Hoo-ran is an editorial writer at The Korea Herald. She can be reached at khooran@heraldcorp.com ― Ed.