Pyongyang's fifth nuclear test was intended for an audience in Washington, lawmaker Antonio Inoki said Tuesday, citing a face-to-face conversation in Pyongyang with North Korea's top foreign affairs official, Ri Su Yongk.
Inoki said he met with Ri for about 90 minutes Saturday. Ri is a vice chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea.
"This is not directed at Japan. The nuclear development is toward the United States," Inoki quoted Ri as saying.