May 10 (NHK) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have reaffirmed joint efforts to fully denuclearize North Korea.
Abe and Moon met in Tokyo on Wednesday afternoon following their 3-way summit with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. Moon is visiting Japan for the first time since taking office.
Abe said the goal of complete, verifiable and irreversible abandonment of all of North Korea's weapons of mass destruction, and all its ballistic missiles, should be firmly upheld.
The 2 leaders welcomed North Korea's closure of its Punggye-ri nuclear test site as a positive step toward denuclearization.
They agreed to work together to urge the North to not only stop nuclear tests, but also to take concrete steps toward complete denuclearization.
Abe thanked Moon for directly conveying to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at their summit last month Japan's stance on the abductions of Japanese nationals by the North. Abe and Moon reaffirmed continued efforts to resolve the issue.
Abe welcomed the South Korean government's response to moves to erect a statue symbolizing Koreans requisitioned to work in Japan during World War Two in front of the Japanese Consulate General in Busan.
He also stressed the importance of implementing the 2015 bilateral agreement on those referred to as comfort women.
The 2 leaders agreed to deal appropriately with difficult issues between their countries to develop a future-oriented bilateral relationship.
They also agreed to promote shuttle diplomacy involving mutual visits by the 2 countries' leaders.
Source: ANNnewsCH
