Families of Japanese and South Korean victims of abductions by North Korea reaffirmed Saturday they will cooperate in efforts to rescue their missing relatives.</PARAGRAPH> <PHOTO> <TABLE WIDTH='250' ALIGN='RIGHT' BORDER='0'> <TR> <TD><IMG ALT='News photo' BORDER='0' SRC='../images/photos2006/nn20060528a2a.jpg' WIDTH='250' HEIGHT='192'/></TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><FONT SIZE='1'><B>Sakie Yokota –

and her husband Shigeru welcome family members of South Korean victims at Tokyo's Haneda airport Saturday morning.

In a public meeting in Tokyo, the South Korean participants explained the situation surround the abduction issue in their country and criticized their government for not placing enough importance on it.

Choi U Yong, who heads a South Korean group of abductees' families and whose father was abducted by North Korea at sea, told the gathering she thinks Japanese people have more concern over the South Korean abduction issue than the South Korean public.

But Lee Mi Il, who heads another such group, the Korean War Abductees Family Union, and whose father was abducted during the 1950-1953 Korean War, said South Koreans' interest in the issue appears to be increasing thanks to enhanced cooperation between the Japanese and South Korean relatives.

Shigeru Yokota, whose daughter Megumi was abducted from Japan to North Korea in 1977 at age 13, and other relatives of Japanese abduction victims also attended the gathering.

Earlier Saturday, the South Korean participants were welcomed by Yokota, his wife Sakie and other Japanese as they arrived at Haneda airport in Tokyo along with two lawmakers from the main opposition party.