N. Korea Seen Making Maneuvers to Hold Dialogue with Japan

May 13, 2018

Seoul- A decision by North Korea to exclude Japanese reporters from international journalists invited to witness the dismantlement of its nuclear test site is part of Pyongyang's maneuvering to bring Japan to the table, a senior South Korean government official indicated Sunday.

The North Korean Foreign Ministry said Saturday that journalists from China, Russia, the United States, Britain and South Korea will be allowed access when a ceremony for dismantling the nuclear test ground is held between May 23 and May 25.

The ministry said only journalists from the five countries will be invited because of limited space.

But the official at the South Korean presidential office said the exclusion of Japanese journalists is apparently linked to the situation in which Japan and North Korea have yet to engage in formal dialogue.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last month told South Korean President Moon Jae-in that Pyongyang is ready to hold dialogue with Tokyo at any time, according of a South Korean account of the historic inter-Korean summit.

In a commentary issued on Saturday, North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency signaled Pyongyang's readiness to hold dialogue with Tokyo, saying, "Only redemption of past can help Japan." Jiji Press