Japan willing to talk to North Korea and normalise ties: PM Shinzo Abe

Japanese PM Shinzo Abe said today that Japan strongly for peace in the Korean Peninsula while asserting that his country was willing to talk to North Korea to normalise ties.

Abe and Trump earlier met at the White House with both leaders discussing the impending summit with Kim Jong-un at length.

"In five days, the US-North Korea summit is to take place. First of all, I would like to pay my deep respect to the outstanding leadership of President Trump as he made this decision that no past president were ever able to accomplish. In the last 18 months, we really spent many hours to discuss this issue," the Japanese PM said.

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The Japanese PM who has strongly stood for denuclearisation of North Korea, said: "Japan is willing to talk to North Korea to normalise ties."

"Trump, amongst the world leaders, I think is one of the leaders who understands the issue the greatest. So at the upcoming summit, the abduction issue would be explained to Kim," he added.

Japan, Abe said, will continue to ask for complete implementation of the successive United Nations Security Council Resolutions.  Abe said based on the Japan-North Korea Pyongyang Declaration, Tokyo was prepared to settle the past, normalise diplomatic relations and improve economic ties with North Korea. 

"There is no change at all for Japan's policy to seek comprehensive solution of the abduction, nuclear and missile programmes, and to realise real peace in northeast Asia. This is what Japan strongly hopes for," he said.

Abe added that the world was going to witness a "historic" summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un next week.