(* This is a provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only. The original text is in Japanese.)

Press Conference by Minister for Foreign Affairs Hirofumi Nakasone

Date: Friday, December 12, 2008, 9:24 a.m.
Place: In front of the Cabinet Meeting Room in the House

Main topic:

North Korean Issues

1. North Korean Issues

Question:
The Six-Party Talks ended without any new development. What is your opinion on these results?

Minister:
First of all, I am very disappointed. Since the main purpose of the Six-Party Talks this time was to thoroughly put a concrete verification protocol into writing, to not have achieved this is very disappointing.

Question:
North Korea has not changed its hard-lined approach towards putting the agreement about sample taking into writing. What have you heard regarding the circumstances behind this approach?

Minister:
I do not know the details of the exchanges with the other parties. However, I believe there are many ways to word this. I believe that there was a difference of opinions with the other five parties that could not be reconciled. I myself do not know exactly what the thinking behind North Korea's approach is.

Question:
What is your opinion on the perspective of future talks?

Minister:
China, which is the host country, will take a central role in coordinating the next Six-Party talks. I hope that China will make efforts to coordinate the next round of talks and they will be convened as soon as possible.

Question:
Japan-North Korea Consultations were not held this time. What are your thoughts on how Japan should proceed going forward?

Minister:
The abduction issue is an extremely important matter and I hope that it will be resolved as soon as possible. From Japan's side, we have been making requests for a meeting to the North Korean Foreign Ministry through the Japanese Embassy in Beijing. However, up until now we have not yet received any response.

Question:
You are requesting a meeting?

Minister:
We have been continuously requesting North Korea to conduct a reinvestigation of the issue as soon as possible in line with the agreement from the working-level meeting held in August. It is also essential that we have direct exchanges with the North Korean side, and from those perspectives, we have been making such requests through diplomatic channels of the embassy.

Question:
Given the results of the Six-Party Talks, some may point out that the US-North Korea Consultations held prior to the Six-Party Talks or the US outlook were too optimistic. What is your opinion on this?

Minister:
Since US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill gave Japan a report on October 3 after the US-North Korean Consultations, we have been consistently stating the importance of putting a concrete verification protocol in order to achieve denuclearization into writing. In this sense, it is extremely unfortunate that the situation has not gone according to the agreement between the US and North Korea and I believe that it is vital that we continue efforts towards this objective.

Question:
Considering the fact that North Korea has been removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism and there have been no developments regarding the verification protocol, it seems that the outlook was indeed too optimistic. What is your opinion on this?

Minister:
I will refrain from commenting on whether the outlook was too optimistic. However, since this is a situation involving other parties, we predicted to an extent from the beginning that negotiations would be extremely difficult. I believe that it is important to continue with our approach toward North Korea, including the convening of the next round of talks.

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