Japan Aims to Lead Pacific Islands Summit to Address N. Korean Issues

May 16, 2018

Tokyo- Ahead of a summit of Pacific island nations in Japan later this week, the Japanese government is working to have the meeting's joint statement mention efforts to scrap North Korea's nuclear and missile programs and bring back home Japanese nationals abducted by the reclusive nation decades ago.

It would be the first time for a Pacific islands' summit to adopt a document referring to North Korean issues, according to Japanese Foreign Ministry officials.

The move comes ahead of the June 12 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore.

The Eighth Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting will take place in the northeastern city of Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, for two days from Friday. New Caledonia and French Polynesia are set to join the triennial event for the first time.

At the summit, ways to enhance maritime security are expected to be discussed, with a view to blocking North Korea's efforts to evade international sanctions, including ship-to-ship smuggling at sea.

To this end, Japan will consider proposing joint training to support human resources development by other participating nations and supplying necessary ships to them.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is also expected to underscore the importance of the rule of law and high-quality infrastructure development in the Indo-Pacific region, at a time when China is increasing its influence over Pacific island countries. Jiji Press