Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in New York on Sunday to attend the U.N. General Assembly and to take part in a slew of meetings surrounding the annual event.
Japan "will take the leadership toward a new U.N. resolution" for sanctions against North Korea, Abe told reporters before departing from Tokyo's Haneda airport.
He will also fly to Cuba, partly to fortify the international consensus over the threat from North Korea. He will be the first Japanese prime minister to visit Cuba, which has close ties with Pyongyang.