PATTAYA, Thailand (Kyodo) Prime Minister Taro Aso hinted Saturday during a meeting here with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and South Korean President Lee Myung Bak that Japan will accept a U.N. Security Council presidential statement about North Korea's recent rocket launch in lieu of a resolution.
"If a strong message can be ensured and the international community can swiftly send that message (to North Korea), we think we don't need to stick to a certain format," Aso said at a news conference after meeting bilaterally with Wen and as a trio with Lee.
Aso repeated Japan's position is that it is desirable for the international community to adopt a UNSC resolution, but he also hinted that he and Lee were unable to convince Wen to go along with the matter. China, Pyongyang's biggest ally, has been resisting calls to support a legally binding resolution.