Japan's foreign minister has asked her South Korean counterpart to review a court ruling ordering Tokyo to pay damages to those referred to as wartime comfort women. Kamikawa Yoko called the ruling extremely regrettable.

Kamikawa and Foreign Minister Park Jin met for about 90 minutes on Sunday morning at a hotel in Busan, South Korea.

Kamikawa took up the issue of Thursday's court decision. A South Korean high court reversed a lower court ruling that dismissed a demand for compensation filed by a group of former comfort women. She urged Park to take action to rectify what she describes as the state of violation of international law.

On North Korea's recent launch of what it claims to be a military spy satellite, the two ministers were in lockstep to condemn Pyongyang and reaffirmed the need for a coordinated response by Tokyo, Seoul, and Washington.

Tokyo is seeking closer cooperation with Seoul in security, as their strained relations have shown early signs of improvement while clarifying its stance on pending issues such as the comfort women.

Kamikawa is set to take part in a meeting of the foreign ministers of Japan, China and South Korea. They are meeting in person for the first time in four years.

She is expected to discuss their countries' cooperation and regional issues with the counterparts and propose a trilateral summit in the near future.

South Korean government sources report that Park said Seoul respects the 2015 bilateral agreement on those referred to as comfort women.

The sources say Park responded to Kamikawa's reaction to a court ruling during their meeting earlier in the day. The 2015 deal confirms that the issue involving the women had been resolved "finally and irreversibly."

The sources also say Park said both nations should work to restore the reputation and dignity of those affected by the issue and find a way to build future-oriented bilateral relations.