Japan, S. Korea seek resumption of six-party talks+

TOKYO, April 16 Kyodo -
(EDS: ADDING INFO IN 6TH, 8TH, LAST TWO GRAFS)
Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone and his South Korean counterpart Yu Myung
Hwan agreed Thursday that the two countries will continue close cooperation
aimed at a resumption of 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 the negotiations
and that it is important for the six nations to reach an agreement on ways to
verify 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 consultations on how to resume the six-party talks, which
have been deadlocked since December, and that Japan will discuss the issue when
Prime Minister Taro Aso makes a 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 that Japan wants to be
handled in the six-party framework.
Yu, who is in Tokyo for a donors conference for 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.
Yu said that the abduction issue needs to be addressed in the six-party
framework involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States.
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.
The two ministers agreed that although North Korea strongly opposed the
statement, Japan and South Korea -- along with China, Russia and the United
States -- must respond calmly, according to the officials.
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.
Meanwhile, Nakasone requested that South Korean President Lee Myung Bak visit
Japan at an ''early time'' as part of the so-called ''shuttle diplomacy''
involving the two countries' leaders. Aso visited South Korea in January for
talks with Lee.
Yu said the two countries will study the matter through diplomatic channels.
==Kyodo
2009-04-16 22:06:54