Japan, Australia Urge N. Korea to Resolve Abduction Issue

October 11, 2018

Sydney- The Japanese and Australian foreign and defense ministers on Wednesday urged North Korea to immediately resolve the issue of Japanese citizens kidnapped by the reclusive country decades ago.

In a joint statement issued after their meeting in Sydney, the ministers also reaffirmed cooperation in "surveillance of suspicious maritime activities including illicit ship-to-ship transfers involving North Korean-flagged vessels."

The ministers "remained seriously concerned about the situation in the South China Sea," where China is developing military bases.

The so-called two-plus-two meeting among the Japanese and Australian foreign and defense ministers was the first since April 2017.

The latest meeting was attended by Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya, and Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defense Minister Christopher Pyne.

The statement also called for strengthening trilateral cooperation among Australia, Japan and the United States in fields such as security and infrastructure investment to implement the free and open Indo-Pacific strategy proposed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Kono told a joint press conference after the meeting that cooperation with Australia, Japan's strategic partner, is more important than ever.

Payne said that Australia's relations with Japan have become deeper.

The foreign and defense ministers also held separate talks and agreed on an early conclusion of negotiations on a proposed agreement to facilitate joint military drills and cooperation in disaster relief activities between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the Australian military. Jiji Press