President Park Geun-hye held out her "sincere expectations" Monday that South Korea and Japan will turn 2015 into the starting point for forward-looking bilateral ties.

In her message to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe conveyed by visiting Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, Park emphasized the need for the two sides to resolve pending issues in a smooth manner.

"Minister Yun Byung-se delivered President Park's verbal message that she sincerely hopes the two countries will resolve pending issues and this year, the 50th anniversary since the normalization of diplomatic ties, will become the year for the two sides to open a new future," the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said in a press release.

The ministry was briefing the outcome of Yun's meeting with Abe in Tokyo, a day after his talks with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

Yun noted the decision by both Park and Abe to attend anniversary events to be held in their respective capitals later Monday. 

It demonstrates their "clear and strong will for the improvement of the relations between the two sides," Yun told Abe.

Abe also vowed to work together with Park in developing Seoul-Tokyo partnerships for the people of both sides and the next generation.

The Northeast Asian neighbors have "various problems to resolve. And I believe it is important to be able to talk frankly with each other," said the prime minister.

Later in the day, Abe plans to attend an anniversary reception hosted by the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo.

In Seoul, Park met with Abe's special envoy, Fukushiro Nukaga, at Cheong Wa Dae,  presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said, without elaborating. Park is also scheduled to join a corresponding event organized by the Japanese Embassy here.

Seoul and Tokyo are in stand-offs over the divergent interpretation of shared history, especially the so-called "comfort women" issue.

South Korea has urged Japan to admit its legal responsibility for forcing Korean women into sexual servitude at Japanese military brothels during World War II.

Japan has claimed the matter has been settled in the 1965 treaty to normalize diplomatic relations.

Meanwhile, Yun presented Abe with a framed picture of his late father, Shintaro Abe, taken in 1984 during his trip to Seoul as a Japanese foreign minister. And the prime minister replied, "Thank you," in Korean. (Yonhap)