A government delegation will make a four-day visit to North Korea from Monday to assess Pyongyang's investigation of the fate of Japanese nationals abducted decades ago.

In talks with North Korea's special investigatory committee Tuesday and Wednesday in Pyongyang, the delegation hopes to obtain information on 12 Japanese officially recognized by Tokyo as abductees and who remain unaccounted for. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called the abduction issue his government's "highest priority."

The abduction issue has prevented the two countries from normalizing diplomatic relations, and this will be the first Japanese government mission to North Korea since November 2004.