Abe ready to meet Kim to resolve abduction issue

Jul 06, 2018 | News On Japan

Jul 06, 2018 (NHK) - Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has expressed determination to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to resolve the issue of the North's abductions of Japanese.

Abe was speaking at a meeting with former abductee Hitomi Soga, whose mother is still unaccounted for after the two were abducted by North Korean agents decades ago.

Soga said she feels sad every time she thinks of the abductees left in the North and their families in Japan, as both are getting old. She asked Abe for more support for the families.

Abe said he's determined to meet Kim to try to resolve the issue, but that doing so may not be easy.

Abe also said Japan and the North must end their mutual distrust and start new diplomacy.

The meeting was also attended by mayors of 3 Japanese cities where former abductees live after returning from the North.

The mayors urged the central government to take the initiative in direct negotiations with Pyongyang to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

Last month, Abe met the leader and other members of a group of abductees' relatives.

Typhoons No. 28 and 29 Bring High Waves to Japan's Pacific Coast

Two typhoons moving across the Pacific southeast of Japan are expected to remain well away from the Japanese mainland, but powerful swells could bring rough seas to a wide stretch of the country's Pacific coastline throughout the three-day holiday weekend, according to forecasts updated at 3 a.m. on October 10.

Cyberattacks Spread Across Japan

A series of cyberattacks has disrupted business operations and exposed millions of customer records across Japan, with a ransomware attack on a cloud service provider affecting 495 companies and local governments nationwide, while convenience store operator Lawson has disclosed a separate breach involving more than 2.15 million personal information records.

Japan's First 360-Degree Projection Mapping Opens in Osaka

Japan's first 360-degree projection mapping show will open at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts on October 10, transforming the historic building into an immersive world of light, music, and seasonal imagery, with organizers hoping the attraction will also help stimulate the city's nighttime economy.

Tokyo University Professor Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Tokyo University of Science professor emeritus Kenzo Soai has been awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with French chemist Henri B. Kagan for discoveries that transformed scientists' understanding of how chemical reactions can favor one of two mirror-image forms of a molecule.

US Military Halts All Okinawa Operations for 48 Hours

The US military suspended activities by all forces stationed in Okinawa for 48 hours from noon on October 7, an unusual measure following the arrest of a US Marine in connection with a robbery and murder case that has renewed scrutiny of crimes involving American service members.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Society NEWS

Most Sightings of Fugitive Yoichi Hatta Reported in Kanto

Police in Oita Prefecture have revealed that the Kanto region accounts for the largest number of reported sightings of Yoichi Hatta, a fugitive wanted in connection with a fatal hit-and-run incident in Beppu in 2022, with authorities preparing to distribute new wanted posters nationwide from November as the search enters its fifth year.