Japan maintains N. Korea warning, surveillance activities

TOKYO, Nov. 28 Kyodo -
The Japanese government is closely watching North Korea's movements Sunday, as
South Korea and the United States started a naval exercise in the Yellow Sea
following Pyongyang's bombardment of a South Korean border island.
The Self-Defense Forces are gathering information around the clock and have
stepped up warning and surveillance activities in the surrounding sea and air,
while all members of Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Cabinet are on standby to
respond to possible developments on the Korean Peninsula.
Kan held a meeting with Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku and other
government officials on Sunday afternoon, likely to discuss North Korean moves
after the start of the four-day joint drill between South Korea and the United
States.
Earlier in the day, the prime minister was updated on the situation by Sengoku,
Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa and Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara. Kan told
reporters later, ''I instructed them to address the situation in a firm manner
without lowering our guard.''
On China's proposal Sunday to hold emergency consultations among the heads of
delegations to the six-party talks on North Korea's denuclearization in Beijing
in early December, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Tetsuro Fukuyama told
reporters that Japan will consider the matter carefully in coordination with
South Korea and the United States.
A Japanese government source suggested that the six-party talks may not be a
suitable forum for taking up North Korea's artillery bombardment on Tuesday, as
the multilateral framework is meant to discuss issues related to Pyongyang's
nuclear program.
In a TV program Sunday morning, Fukuyama said, ''The government is taking all
possible measures'' to prepare for unexpected occurrences.
Fukuyama also suggested that Japan will consider additional measures depending
on developments in North Korea, saying, ''The possibility of a resumption of
the six-party talks is getting slim, and our sanctions on North Korea have not
led to any progress. We must consider if we need to introduce another
approach.''
Cabinet members have been ordered by Kan to remain in Tokyo until Wednesday,
when the South Korea-U.S. joint military drill is scheduled to end, and to be
able to arrive at their ministry offices within an hour in the event that an
emergency situation develops.
==Kyodo