Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said he and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed during their summit talks in the United States last week to urge North Korea to abandon not only its nuclear and missile programs, but also biological and chemical weapons.
Trump is expected to directly request the abandonment during a planned bilateral meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which is scheduled to be held by early June.
At a Tokyo function held Monday by a Liberal Democratic Party faction led by party Secretary General Toshihiro Nikai, Abe said: "[North Korea] has not only nuclear but also biological and chemical weapons such as sarin. Japan's basic stance is to seek the abandonment of weapons, including these, which is fully consistent [with Trump's position]."
North Korea is said to possess anthrax and many other biological and chemical weapons, in addition to deadly sarin nerve gas and VX nerve agent. There are suspicions that technical assistance from Pyongyang was involved in the use of sarin gas in Syria.
In response to the airstrikes on Syria by the United States, Britain and France, Abe expressed concern on Monday about possible attacks on Japan by North Korean ballistic missiles equipped with biological and chemical weapons.
"The threat of weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear, biological and chemical weapons is also increasing in East Asia," he said.
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