South Korean President Moon Jae-in told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during talks on Tuesday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is ready to engage in direct talks with Japan at an appropriate time and improve relations.
South Korea's presidential office provided the details as Tokyo and Seoul confirmed the need to maintain U.N. sanctions against Pyongyang to prompt it to take concrete action toward complete denuclearization.
Abe has expressed his willingness to hold direct talks with North Korea to achieve a breakthrough in resolving the long-stalled issue of Japanese nationals abducted by Pyongyang in the 1970s and 1980s.