Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi revealed on Monday that she has informed North Korea of her desire to hold a summit with leader Kim Jong Un. The remarks come as time runs out for families of Japanese nationals abducted by Pyongyang decades ago. Takaichi called the issue a top priority for her government.
At a gathering in Tokyo on the abductions issue, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office on Oct. 21, emphasized her intention to resolve the decades-old problem through a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. "We have already conveyed to North Korea our desire to hold a summit meeting," she said. "I want to speak frankly with him and achieve concrete results. I will do everything during my term to have a breakthrough and resolve the matter."
Takaichi described the abductions as an issue that puts "the lives of victims and national sovereignty at stake," vowing to work closely with the United States and other countries. During last week's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Japan, she sought his continued cooperation. Trump, meeting abductee family members alongside Takaichi, reiterated his commitment, saying, "I'm with them all the way, and the U.S. is with them all the way."
Japan's government officially lists 17 people abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, suspecting Pyongyang's involvement in many other disappearances. Five were repatriated in October 2002 following landmark talks between then-North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and then-Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in Pyongyang the previous month. There has been no summit since Koizumi's 2004 visit to Pyongyang. Calling the issue a "top priority," Japan has been seeking to arrange a visit to North Korea.
Takaichi expressed hope that the issue would be settled while family members are "still in good health," stating it is "essential for Japan and North Korea to build a future of shared peace and prosperity." Families are racing against time; Sakie Yokota, 89, mother of symbolic victim Megumi Yokota abducted at age 13, is now the only surviving parent of abductees. In 2014, North Korea agreed to reinvestigate the cases, including Yokota's, but the probe was suspended after Japan tightened sanctions following Pyongyang's 2016 nuclear test. North Korea, with no diplomatic ties to Japan, maintains the abductions issue has been resolved.