Japan, S. Korea foreign ministers seek resumption of 6-party talks+

TOKYO, April 17 Kyodo -
Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone and his South Korean counterpart Yu Myung
Hwan agreed Thursday the two countries will continue close tie-ups regarding
resuming the stalled six-party talks on denuclearizing North Korea, a Japanese
official said.
Nakasone and Yu agreed during a meeting in Tokyo that China's role as chair of
the denuclearization talks is key to getting Pyongyang back to negotiations and
that it is important for the six nations to reach agreement on ways to verify
the North Korea's nuclear programs, the official said.
Nakasone was quoted as telling Yu that Japan, South Korea and the United States
must maintain close consultation on how to resume the six-party talks, and that
Japan will discuss the issue when Prime Minister Taro Aso makes two-day visit
to China from April 29.
Nakasone asked for Seoul's continued support in addressing the issue of North
Korea's past abductions of Japanese nationals, an issue Japan wants to be
handled in the six-party framework.
Yu, who is in Tokyo for a donors conference on Pakistan on Friday, responded by
saying South Korea ''fully understands'' Japan's position on the abduction
issue. He added Seoul will extend ''every possible support'' for Japan.
The Nakasone-Yu meeting took place at a time when North Korea has vowed to
reinforce its nuclear deterrence and has said it will stop participating in the
six-party process after the U.N. Security Council adopted a presidential
statement Monday condemning the country's rocket launch on April 5.
On Tuesday, North Korea ordered U.S. nuclear experts who were disabling nuclear
facilities at the Yongbyon nuclear complex, about 90 kilometers north of
Pyongyang, and International Atomic Energy Agency staff monitoring the work to
leave the country.
The six-party talks involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the
United States have stalled since December over ways to verify Pyongyang's
nuclear programs.
==Kyodo
2009-04-16 21:25:15