WASHINGTON — Relatives of Japanese abducted by North Korea were not surprised that U.S. officials were reluctant to immediately assume a tougher stance against Pyongyang.

They had anticipated that the administration of President Barack Obama, a Democrat, would not be as aggressive about the abduction issue as his Republican predecessor, George W. Bush, appeared to be.

Shigeo Iizuka, chairman of the Association of the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea, said he sensed a change in mood after the Republicans made way for the Democrats. "It was just as I expected," he said.