A Japanese official said that Japan and North Korea will be meeting on August 30, 2012 for the second day of talks. The official added that the countries through the talks will seek tom find enough common ground for possible future discussions at a higher level.
A Japanese official who declined to be named said that the diplomats from the two countries began meeting at North Korea’s embassy in Beijing shortly before midday. The two sides came face to face for the first time in four years.
The diplomats met for nearly three hours and were engaged in a matter of fact and frank exchange of opinions. Japan has characterised the talks in Beijing by relatively junior officials as meant to prepare for the possible higher level meetings at a later date.
The current meetings are being closely watched as the diplomats and experts try to ascertain if North Korea’s foreign policy could change under new leader Kim Jong Un. The leadership of the communist state was taken up by Kim after his father Kim Jong II died in December. Japan is also keen to discuss the fate of the citizens abducted by the North Korean agents amidst suspicion that Pyongyang has failed to provide all the information.
