The latest round of Japan-North Korea talks on normalizing relations, held in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week for the first time in two years, was conspicuous by the lack of substantial progress. The two sides remained far apart on North Korea's nuclear-weapons program and the fate of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korean agents more than 20 years ago.
The North Korean delegation, stressing that the abduction issue has already been "broadly resolved," insisted that Japanese economic aid take precedence over other issues. Pyongyang, it must be said, has misread public opinion in Japan. As the Japanese delegation made clear, Japan will not be able to provide such assistance as long as the abduction issue lingers.
North Korea allowed five surviving abductees to return to Japan on Oct. 15 for family reunions for the first time in 24 years -- on the assumption that they would stay here for just a week or two. The Japanese government, however, last week decided to let them remain here permanently. Moreover, it is demanding that their children, now in Pyongyang, be reunited with their parents here. Tokyo also is said to be considering allowing an abductee's American husband to settle in Japan.