Abe, Trump discuss N.Korea, trade, abductees

Apr 18 (NHK) - Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is holding his sixth summit with US President Donald Trump.

He is seeking to reaffirm their stance on the Korean Peninsula ahead of a US-North Korea summit.

The two leaders are scheduled to have rounds of talks at Trump's retreat in Florida on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Ahead of the summit, Abe told reporters that he wants to confirm that Japan and the US will work together to make North Korea abandon its nuclear and missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner. Abe plans to reaffirm the policy of maintaining the maximum pressure on the North until it takes concrete actions.

Abe also said he plans to ask Trump to use his upcoming meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to take up an issue important to Japan -- the Japanese citizens who were abducted by North Korea decades ago.

On trade, Abe plans to propose a new framework for bilateral talks, as Trump attaches importance to reducing the US trade deficit.

They also plan to play golf again as they did when Trump visited Japan last November.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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