Japan vows to press North Korea abductions issue at every forum

Japan will raise the issue of North Korea’s abduction of Japanese citizens “at every diplomatic opportunity” and strengthen international cooperation to achieve an early resolution, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said Saturday.

Kihara, the Japanese government’s lead official on the abduction issue, made the remarks while attending a rally in Tokushima prefecture, emphasizing the need to keep the issue visible both domestically and abroad.

“We will seize every diplomatic opportunity to raise the abduction issue,” Kihara said. He also stressed the importance of educating younger generations, adding that Japan must continue to demonstrate to North Korea that the entire nation seeks the swift return of all victims.

Tokushima is the hometown of the late Shigeru Yokota, father of Megumi Yokota, who was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13. Megumi’s brother, Takuya Yokota, who represents the families of abduction victims, and Kaoru Hasuike, a former abductee, also addressed the gathering.

Kihara said the government would continue multifaceted efforts and called on the international community to cooperate, describing the abduction issue as directly linked to Japan’s sovereignty.

Japan officially recognizes 17 citizens as having been abducted by North Korea during the 1970s and 1980s. During former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s visit to Pyongyang in 2002, then-North Korean leader Kim Jong-il acknowledged the abductions, and five victims were allowed to return to Japan.

However, North Korea has claimed that the remaining 12 victims are either deceased or never entered the country, a position Japan has rejected. Japanese authorities have identified 10 North Korean operatives as suspects and issued international arrest warrants.

The issue has remained a central obstacle to the normalization of Japan-North Korea relations for more than two decades. Tokyo maintains that diplomatic normalization is impossible without a full resolution of the abductions.

Japanese officials have also pointed to similarities with South Korea’s own unresolved abduction cases, underscoring the need for cooperation between the two countries. Kihara said Japan would continue combining support for victims’ families with sustained international pressure to resolve the issue.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

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