Japan's Abe Said Ready to Meet with N. Korea Head Kim on Abduction

Tokyo, 12 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is ready to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in order to resolve the issue of abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korean agents, a Japanese minister has said. In public occasions Abe has said he is ready to meet with Kim if the meeting really contributes to resolving the issue, Keiji Furuya, minister in charge of the abduction issue, told a television program Wednesday night. At intergovernmental talks held in Stockholm late last month, North Korea vowed to reinvestigate the whereabouts of not only the Japanese government-recognized abductees but those suspected of being kidnapped to the reclusive country, while Japan agreed to lift some of its sanctions against Pyongyang once the probe begins. In the TV program, Furuya noted Tokyo will closely examine Pyongyang's way of starting the investigation before making a decision on the partial sanction lifting. He earlier said no sanction would be lifted unless North Korea makes concrete actions. END