The Japanese government essentially welcomed the announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump regarding his decision to hold the U.S.-North Korea summit on June 12, with a senior Foreign Ministry official saying, "It could possibly become a step forward for North Korea's complete nuclear abandonment."
Japan intends to dispatch Kenji Kanasugi, director general of the Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, to Singapore where the summit will be held to collect related information on the sidelines of the summit meeting, according to sources.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in his address to a meeting of the Shiga prefectural chapter of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in Otsu, mentioned a planned meeting with Trump in Washington this Thursday.
"We'll do our utmost so that it will become a historic U.S.-North Korea summit that promotes issues of Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs and the abduction of Japanese nationals by North Korea."
Meanwhile, there are cautious opinions within the government that Trump may become too eager regarding dialogue with North Korea and ease U.S. pressure on Pyongyang.
A senior Japanese government official said emphatically on Saturday, "There is no change in our policy to continue applying pressure until North Korea takes concrete steps toward denuclearization."
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
