North Korea's Choe Son-hui: "Cannot Understand Kishida's Obsession with Kidnapping Issue... No Interest in Dialogue with Japan"

Weekday North Korean Ambassador: "No Meeting with Any Japanese Official"

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui reiterated on the 29th that she has no intention of engaging in dialogue with Japan, telling Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who said he would continue efforts to resolve the abduction issue, "I cannot understand why you persistently cling to a problem that has no solution."

North Korea's Choe Son-hui: "Cannot Understand Kishida's Obsession with Kidnapping Issue... No Interest in Dialogue with Japan"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In a statement released through the Korean Central News Agency on the same day, Foreign Minister Choe referred to Prime Minister Kishida's remarks the previous day about striving to resolve various issues between North Korea and Japan. She emphasized, "We have nothing to resolve regarding the 'abduction issue' that Japan talks about, nor do we have any obligation or intention to make efforts in this regard."

Foreign Minister Choe stated, "Dialogue between North Korea and Japan is not our concern," reiterating the North Korean stance against pursuing negotiations with Japan, as expressed by Kim Yo-jong, Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, on the 26th. She added, "We will always respond firmly to Japan's interference and obstruction of our exercise of sovereignty," implying that North Korea's illegal nuclear and missile development should not be criticized.

On the same day, Ri Ryong-nam, North Korea's ambassador to China, claimed that a Japanese embassy official in China contacted him via email the previous day but said, "We have no business meeting with the Japanese side." Earlier, on the 26th, Kim Yo-jong, sister of Chairman Kim Jong-un and Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, announced that North Korea would reject and avoid any contact or negotiations with Japan and would not pursue a North Korea-Japan summit. Within a few days, North Korea has consecutively sent three officials?Kim Yo-jong, Ri Ryong-nam, and Choe Son-hui?to express their intention not to meet with Japan.