Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to strictly implement U. N. sanctions on North Korea and continue cooperating closely in trying to halt its nuclear program. Just after holding a meeting with Putin in the Vietnamese coastal city of Danang, Abe
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to strictly implement U. N. sanctions on North Korea and continue cooperating closely in trying to halt its nuclear program.
Just after holding a meeting with Putin in the Vietnamese coastal city of Danang, Abe also told reporters that they agreed to accelerate the pace of preparations for joint economic programs to be carried out on islands disputed between the two countries.
Putin said he is « very pleased » that ties between the two countries are « steadily developing, » backed by active political dialogue and progress on economic cooperation, as they sat together for the talks, which lasted about an hour.
A senior Japanese government official told reporters that the two leaders held a separate 15-minute conversation, only accompanied by their interpreters, which mainly focused on issues related to the Russia-controlled islands.
But the official declined to disclose the specifics of their discussions.
The meeting, the 20th between the two leaders, on the sidelines of a regional summit came just days after the prime minister and U. S. President Donald Trump agreed to maximize pressure on North Korea until it changes its nuclear and missile policies.
At Monday’s formal meeting in Tokyo between Abe and Trump, the two leaders agreed that more cooperation from China and Russia is needed to rein in North Korea.
