This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/30/world/asia/north-korea-agrees-to-investigate-fate-of-japanese-abducted-decades-ago.html

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
North Korea Agrees to Investigate Fate of Japanese Abducted Decades Ago North Korea Will Investigate Fate of Abducted Japanese
(about 1 hour later)
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea has agreed to open a new investigation into the fate of Japanese citizens abducted by its agents during the Cold War, the two countries said Thursday, signaling a possible diplomatic breakthrough in an emotional issue that has divided Japan and the North.SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea has agreed to open a new investigation into the fate of Japanese citizens abducted by its agents during the Cold War, the two countries said Thursday, signaling a possible diplomatic breakthrough in an emotional issue that has divided Japan and the North.
At talks held in Stockholm, North Korean negotiators agreed to Japanese requests to investigate what happened to more than a dozen Japanese believed to have been kidnapped by the isolated Stalinist regime decades ago, reversing the North’s earlier insistence that the issue had been settled.At talks held in Stockholm, North Korean negotiators agreed to Japanese requests to investigate what happened to more than a dozen Japanese believed to have been kidnapped by the isolated Stalinist regime decades ago, reversing the North’s earlier insistence that the issue had been settled.
The top Japanese government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, said that in return, Japan would start lifting sanctions that it had imposed on the North over the abduction issue. Those include a ban on travel between the two countries, on the transfer of money, and also on visits by North Korean ships to Japanese ports, he said.The top Japanese government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, said that in return, Japan would start lifting sanctions that it had imposed on the North over the abduction issue. Those include a ban on travel between the two countries, on the transfer of money, and also on visits by North Korean ships to Japanese ports, he said.
“We expect this to yield concrete results in quickly resolving problems involving Japanese, including the return of any surviving abductees,” Mr. Suga told reporters.“We expect this to yield concrete results in quickly resolving problems involving Japanese, including the return of any surviving abductees,” Mr. Suga told reporters.
The deal could lead to a resolution of a problem that had driven Japan to cut off virtually all ties with North Korea ever since the North admitted in 2002 that it had kidnapped Japanese citizens, and returned five of them alive. The Japanese public was outraged by the revelations, and by the vague and often puzzling accounts that the North Korean government gave of the fate of several other abductees, who it said had died. Most of them were snatched by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s as they relaxed on the beach or walked home from school. Their fate had been a mystery until the North’s sudden admission. The deal could lead to a resolution of a problem that had driven Japan to cut off virtually all ties with North Korea ever since the North admitted in 2002 that it had kidnapped Japanese citizens, and returned five of them alive.
Japan has been pressing North Korea ever since to produce a fuller account of what happened to the other abductees, amid unconfirmed reports that some had been seen alive even after 2002 in the North, one of the world’s most closed and secretive countries. North Korean diplomats had rejected those demands, saying that it had disclosed all the information on them that it had. The Japanese public was outraged by the revelations, and by the vague and often puzzling accounts that the North Korean government gave of the fate of several other abductees, who it said had died. Most of them were snatched by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s as they relaxed on the beach or walked home from school. Their fate had been a mystery until the North’s sudden admission.
The North’s willingness to reverse that stance may signal a new desire by the dictator Kim Jong-un to open his impoverished nation ever more slightly to the outside world, either to bolster its decrepit economy or to reduce its dependence on China, its main trading partner. For Japan, the possible breakthrough is a rare diplomatic success for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a conservative who has presided over a souring of ties with other neighbors, China and South Korea. Japan has been pressing North Korea ever since to produce a fuller account of what happened to the other abductees, amid unconfirmed reports that some had been seen alive even after 2002 in the North, one of the world’s most closed and secretive countries. North Korean diplomats had rejected those demands, saying it had disclosed all the information on them that it had.
The North’s willingness to reverse that stance may signal a new desire by the dictator Kim Jong-un to open his impoverished nation ever more slightly to the outside world, either to bolster its decrepit economy or to reduce its dependence on China, its main trading partner.
For Japan, the possible breakthrough is a rare diplomatic success for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a conservative who has presided over a souring of ties with other neighbors, China and South Korea.
“The complete resolution of the abductee issue is one of the top priorities of the Abe administration,” Mr. Abe said in announcing the deal. “Our mission is not over until all the families of abductees can once again hold their children in their arms.”“The complete resolution of the abductee issue is one of the top priorities of the Abe administration,” Mr. Abe said in announcing the deal. “Our mission is not over until all the families of abductees can once again hold their children in their arms.”
As part of Thursday’s deal, Mr. Suga said that North Korea had agreed to set up a special committee to conduct an internal investigation into what happened to the abductees. The committee will also examine the fate of other Japanese in the North, including those who accompanied their Korean spouses to the country in the 1950s, and search for the remains of Japanese who died there in the chaotic final days of World War II. As part of Thursday’s deal, Mr. Suga said, North Korea agreed to set up a committee to conduct an internal investigation into what happened to the abductees. The committee will also examine the fate of other Japanese in the North, including those who accompanied their Korean spouses to the country in the 1950s, and search for the remains of Japanese who died there in the chaotic final days of World War II.
Mr. Suga also said that North Korea had agreed to return any surviving abductees that it found. While it is unclear if any could still be alive after so many years, and after the North had already declared them all to be dead, the statement reflected the hopes of Japanese families to be reunited with their missing loved ones. Mr. Suga also said that North Korea had agreed to return any surviving abductees that it found. Though it is unclear if any could still be alive after so many years, and after the North had already declared them all to be dead, the statement reflected the hopes of Japanese families to be reunited with their missing loved ones.