Eurasia Press & News
Japanese national security adviser Shigeru Kitamura agreed with his U.S. and South Korean counterparts on the importance of trilateral cooperation in dealing with North Korea in a virtual conference on Friday, the Japanese government said.
The talks with Robert O’Brien of the United States and South Korea’s Suh Hoon came as ballot counting for the U.S. presidential election continued, with the result having major implications for American foreign policy in Asia going forward.
Republican President Donald Trump has held multiple summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in a bid to rid the country of nuclear weapons, while Democratic challenger Joe Biden has bashed the strategy as only serving to legitimize Kim’s rule.
North Korea has not tested an intercontinental ballistic missile since November 2017, but last month unveiled what appeared to be its largest one yet in a military parade.
In the roughly one-hour teleconference, O’Brien and Suh affirmed support for Japan’s efforts to secure the return of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, according to the National Security Secretariat.
