Abe seeks maximum int’l pressure on Pyongyang​

September 7, 2017

Vladivostok- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in a speech on Thursday, called for maximum international pressure on North Korea to prevent further provocations after its recent nuclear test and ballistic missile launches.

"The international community should unite and maximize pressure" on the defiant country, Abe said at a Russia-hosted Eastern Economic Forum conference in its Far East city of Vladivostok.

Abe apparently aimed to send a strong message directly to North Korea, which dispatched a delegation to the regional conference.

The prime minister denounced the series of provocative acts by North Korea as a "challenge to world peace and prosperity." He underscored the need to persuade the country to abide by related U.N. Security Council resolutions and abandon its nuclear and missile development.

"We must never allow peace in Northeast Asia to be threatened by them (North Koreans)," he said.

As a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Abe asserted the importance of strengthening economic and security ties between Japan and Russia as a cornerstone for stability in Northeast Asia. Jiji Press