Japan has sounded out North Korea about its plan to establish a liaison office in Pyongyang to resolve the long-standing issue of past abductions of Japane
Japan has sounded out North Korea about its plan to establish a liaison office in Pyongyang to resolve the long-standing issue of past abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korean agents, sources familiar with bilateral relations said Sunday.
Tokyo hopes to get to the bottom of the issue and secure the repatriation of the abductees with the plan that was conveyed to the North Korean side through informal contacts, according to the sources.
But the outlook for a major breakthrough on the abduction issue remains uncertain as North Korea’s response has reportedly been cool.
Japan has also expressed its readiness to cooperate in allowing North Korean athletes to enter the country when Tokyo hosts the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics and to work toward settling the “unfortunate past” based on the Japan-North Korea Pyongyang Declaration of 2002, the sources said.
The Pyongyang declaration touched on the “tremendous damage and suffering” Japan caused to the people of Korea during its colonial rule that ran from 1910 to 1945.
The latest approach is seen as a fresh attempt by Tokyo to lay the groundwork for a Japan-North Korea summit, as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been stepping up diplomacy by meeting with U.
