Senior Japanese officials made an unannounced visit to North Korea on Wednesday to discuss a diplomatic standoff over the abduction of Japanese citizens decades ago by North Korean agents, a government spokesman said.
The five-member delegation, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Hitoshi Tanaka, was invited to hold talks on the issue by North Korea, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Hatsuhisa Takashima.
The delegation also includes Mitoji Yabunaka, head of the Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau. They flew to Pyongyang via China and are scheduled to return on Saturday, Takashima said.