Trump Vows to Work with Abe to Resolve Abduction Issue

May 27, 2019

Tokyo- U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to work with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to bring home Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea decades ago, during a meeting with the family members of victims in Tokyo on Monday.

Noting that the abduction issue "is very much on my mind," Trump said, "We will be working together to bring your relatives, your daughters, your sons, your mothers home."

The family members who met Trump at the State Guest House Akasaka Palace included Sakie Yokota, the mother of abduction victim Megumi, and Shigeo Iizuka, the leader of a group for abductee families.

This was the second time for Trump to meet family members of Japanese abductees, following his first such meeting in November 2017. The latest session lasted some 40 minutes.

Trump said that at the request of Abe, he has taken up the abduction issue at his meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Koichiro Iizuka, the eldest son of abduction victim Yaeko Taguchi, said to Trump, "Please help us to return (the abduction victims) to the families by breaking the deadlock of 41 years of abduction."

Yokota said that she believes Trump thinks seriously about the abduction issue. "We really trust President Trump," she added. Jiji Press