North Korea wants Japan to end its "hostile" position toward Pyongyang and put relations between the two countries on a normal course, the official Rodong Sinmun said in a commentary Tuesday.
South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said the North's official newspaper called for Japan to "respect and carry out a joint declaration" made when Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visited Pyongyang in 2002 for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.
"We will do the same thing if Japan acts sincerely and trustworthily, but whether the two countries remain on a collision course or not is totally up to Japan," Yonhap quoted the Rodong Sinmun article as saying.
The newspaper added, "It is time for Japan to make a resolute decision to explore ways of putting an end to the worsening of the relationship."
The September 2002 Pyongyang Declaration signed by Koizumi and Kim called for normalization of ties and establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and North Korea.
But since the summit, which appeared to successfully address Japanese concerns about North Korean missile tests over Japan, relations have deteriorated significantly, particularly over the issues of Japanese abducted to North Korea two decades ago and North Korea's renewed nuclear weapons ambitions.
Official off to Beijing
Senior Vice Foreign Minister Ichiro Aisawa will go to Beijing on Wednesday for talks with senior Chinese officials on the next round of six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear arms threat, the Foreign Ministry said.