North Korean and Japanese envoys began talks yesterday on forging possible diplomatic ties despite making little progress in weekend meetings on the contentious issue of Pyongyang's abductions of Japanese nationals.
Envoys from the two sides opened the four-day talks on Saturday at a hotel in the Chinese capital in the first high-level contact in three years aimed at normalizing relations. The North declared after Sunday's session that differences of opinion remained on kidnappings.
Delegates said yesterday's session would address economic cooperation, the status of North Koreans living in Japan and the return of cultural relics, part of reparations demanded by Pyongyang for Japan's colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula in 1910-1945.
"The Japanese government has been talking over and over again about righting the wrongs of history for the past 60 years," North Korea's chief representative, Song Il-ho, told reporters.
"Today we are here to find out whether the Japanese government has sincerity and real willingness," he said.
Koichi Haraguchi, Japan's chief envoy, was quoted as saying by the Kyodo news agency that Japan will tell North Korea it will be difficult to establish relations unless the abductions issue is resolved.
"We want to confirm our mutual understanding on the issue of economic cooperation. As for normalizing ties, it will be difficult unless the kidnapping issue is resolved," Haraguchi was quoted as saying before yesterday's session began.
In 2002, North Korea admitted to kidnapping 13 Japanese citizens. It later released five and said the other eight had died. But Tokyo wants evidence of the deaths and for North Korea to fully investigate the cases of other suspected abductees who were kidnapped by Northern agents in the 1970s and 1980s.
"North Korea has to make a political decision to resolve the kidnapping issue. Japan wants North Korea to come up with concrete steps," Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said at a press conference yesterday in Tokyo.
"We are demanding that the North return any survivors, disclose the truth about the abductions and hand over any suspects" in the kidnappings, he said.
After nine hours of talks on Sunday, North Korea said significant differences remained over abductions, which Japan says is key to opening relations.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
A prominent Christian leader has allegedly been stabbed at the altar during a Mass yesterday in southwest Sydney. Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was saying Mass at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley just after 7pm when a man approached him at the altar and allegedly stabbed toward his head multiple times. A live stream of the Mass shows the congregation swarm forward toward Emmanuel before it was cut off. The church leader gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a large online following, Officers attached to Fairfield City police area command attended a location on Welcome Street, Wakeley following reports a number