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TOKYO – Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stated on Monday that Japan has already expressed its desire to hold a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to address the long-standing problem of Japanese citizens who were taken by Pyongyang.

At a meeting in Tokyo concerning the abduction issue, Takaichi, who assumed her position on October 21, stated she aims to have an open conversation with Kim and “achieve tangible outcomes,” noting, “I will do everything possible during my tenure to make progress and settle the issue.”

Describing the abductions as a matter that places “the lives of victims and national sovereignty in danger,” Takaichi also pledged to collaborate with the United States and other nations to create a path toward a solution.

During her meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump last week on his trip to Japan, she requested his ongoing support in resolving the matter.

Trump, joined by family members of Japanese abductees and Takaichi, emphasized his dedication to the matter, stating, “I’m fully behind them, and the U.S. stands with them completely.”

The Japanese government formally recognizes 17 individuals as having been taken by North Korea during the 1970s and 1980s, and believes that Pyongyang is responsible for numerous other cases of missing persons.

Five were returned in October 2002 after significant discussions took place between the former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and the former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in Pyongyang the month before.

Following Koizumi’s trip to Pyongyang and his meeting with Kim in 2004, there have been no summits between the leaders of the two countries. Describing the abduction issue as a “top priority,” the Japanese government has been attempting to organize a visit to North Korea.

Takaichi voiced optimism that the matter could be resolved while relatives are “in good health,” emphasizing that addressing it would be “crucial for Japan and North Korea to establish a future marked by mutual peace and prosperity.”

The families of those who have been kidnapped are urgently working to bring their family members back, with Sakie Yokota, the 89-year-old mother of the symbolic victim Megumi Yokota, being the last remaining parent of abductees.

In 2014, North Korea consented to re-examine the incidents involving Japanese citizens who were taken by the nation, such as Megumi Yokota, who was kidnapped when she was 13 years old. However, the investigation was put on hold after Japan increased its sanctions against North Korea following a nuclear test conducted by Pyongyang in 2016.

North Korea, which does not have official diplomatic relations with Japan, claims that the issue of abductions has already been settled.