TOKYO — Japan and North Korea will be unable to resume normalization talks by the end of this month because of the ongoing dispute over the abductions of Japanese nationals, Japan's top government spokesman said Monday.
"I feel it may be difficult" to hold high-level normalization talks because there is not enough time to resolve differences over the abduction issue, Yasuo Fukuda told reporters.The chief cabinet secretary made the comments after senior diplomats from each side reportedly failed to see progress over the matter in informal talks they held in Beijing on the weekend.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters the same day at his office only that the Japanese government "will negotiate with the North patiently so the top negotiator-level talks can be resumed by the year-end."
In normalization talks in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 29-30, North Korea proposed holding the next round of normalization talks in late November, but Japan replied that it would take the matter home for consideration.
The two countries agreed in October to hold a separate session this month, aside from any talks on normalization, exclusively handling security issues, including North Korea's nuclear weapons development program.
"I feel it may be difficult" to hold high-level normalization talks because there is not enough time to resolve differences over the abduction issue, Yasuo Fukuda told reporters.The chief cabinet secretary made the comments after senior diplomats from each side reportedly failed to see progress over the matter in informal talks they held in Beijing on the weekend.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters the same day at his office only that the Japanese government "will negotiate with the North patiently so the top negotiator-level talks can be resumed by the year-end."
In normalization talks in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 29-30, North Korea proposed holding the next round of normalization talks in late November, but Japan replied that it would take the matter home for consideration.
The two countries agreed in October to hold a separate session this month, aside from any talks on normalization, exclusively handling security issues, including North Korea's nuclear weapons development program.