Ahead of the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Pyongyang Declaration between Japan and North Korea on the 17th, North Korean Foreign Ministry Ambassador Song Il-ho made a statement. After emphasizing the conventional position that “all abduction issues have been resolved”, he held back the Japanese side by saying, “It depends on the attitude of the Japanese government to the future direction of relations between Japan and North Korea.
In September 2002, then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visited North Korea for the Japan-North Korea summit meeting, which was held for the first time in history. The two leaders signed the Pyongyang Declaration between Japan and North Korea, saying they would strive to normalize diplomatic relations as soon as possible.
Ahead of the 20th anniversary on the 17th, Ambassador of the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs in charge of normalizing relations between Japan and North Korea, Sung Il-ho, made a statement on the 15th through the Korean Central News Agency for the first time in about two years and ten months.
In it, Ambassador Song said, “The Japanese government will spare no means or method to revive the abduction problem, which has already been solved, and to intensify the atmosphere of opposition to our country at the home and abroad.
On top of that, he said the Japanese government has imposed its own sanctions on North Korea, which continues to develop nuclear weapons and missiles. Besides criticizing North Korea, he restrained the Japanese side saying, “It depends on the attitude of the Japanese government,” regarding the future relationship between Japan and North Korea.
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