As Japanese and North Korean envoys prepared to hold talks Tuesday, Tokyo faced the difficulty of assessing Pyongyang's seriousness in its promised inquiry into the fates of abducted citizens while apparently snubbing Japan and other neighbors Sunday with a pair of missiles fired into the ocean.
However, the provocation might not have been all it seemed. Some experts who follow North Korean affairs said the reported launch of two short-range ballistic missiles was probably intended as a message to South Korea as it plans to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping on a visit to Seoul on Thursday.
Moreover, the North may have been hoping to weaken the ties binding Japan, the United States and South Korea at a time when it and Japan are meeting in Beijing, the experts said.