TOKYO _ Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed "total support" for President Donald Trump's policy on North Korea in a phone conversation between the two leaders, while stressing on the importance of avoiding provocations.
There should also be a reliance on peaceful dialogue to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, Abe told Trump in the call to discuss responses to the latest developments in North Korea, according to a statement from Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The conversation was initiated by the Trump administration. Both agreed to the need for even deeper cooperation in tackling the problems of nuclear weapons and missiles in the region, as well as resolving the matter of kidnappings of Japanese citizens by North Korea.
Abe plans to discuss the issues when he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to China this week.
Abe's show of support comes amid signs of fraying consensus on North Korea among members of the United Nations Security Council, which had thus far remained united behind Trump's maximum pressure campaign on the reclusive nation. A new proposal by China and Russia to lessen the economic embargo on the hermit state is getting pushback in Washington.
The proposal by North Korea's historic allies said the changes were warranted because Kim Jong Un's regime had complied with U.N. resolutions and needed "humanitarian and livelihood" relief.
