Yoon Suk-yeol wants to improve relations between South Korea and Japan after they collapsed under the previous administration, but an upcoming court ruling threatens to derail his initiatives before they even get started.

The case dates back to Japan’s colonial rule of the peninsula from 1910 to 1945, which has poisoned relations with South Korea ever since. During World War II, Japanese companies forced Koreans to work in their factories, and now these former exploited laborers and their descendents are demanding compensation.

From Tokyo’s point of view, it settled all issues concerning allegations of forced labor when it established diplomatic