"Japan's Kishida Pushes for Summit with North Korea's Kim Jong-un to Recover Approval Ratings"

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is reportedly intensifying efforts to arrange a summit meeting with North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un, major foreign media reported on the 13th (local time).

This is interpreted as a strategy to create a diplomatic breakthrough amid declining approval ratings. According to reports citing U.S. and Japanese officials familiar with the matter, Prime Minister Kishida is pushing for the summit to resolve the issue of Japanese abductees. This is seen as a strategy to boost domestic support.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Some of the conversations related to the Japan-North Korea summit push are said to be conducted through the Beijing channel in China. However, officials attending the talks stated that Chairman Kim refuses to cooperate on the Japanese abductee issue, and thus efforts related to the summit have not yielded results.

Prime Minister Kishida has repeatedly stated his intention to hold a Japan-North Korea summit with Kim Jong-un to resolve the Japanese abductee issue.

Earlier, on the 9th, Kishida appeared before the House of Representatives Budget Committee and said regarding the Japan-North Korea summit the Japanese government is pursuing, "We are specifically engaged in various activities." He also said, "In light of the current state of Japan-North Korea relations, I strongly feel the need to boldly change the situation," adding, "I will take the initiative myself to build relations between the leaders."