[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held talks with the families of abductees at the Prime Minister's Office.

The Prime Minister said in his address,

“I would like to thank the families of abductees for coming today despite your busy schedules. I know some of you travelled a long way to be here.

It goes without saying that the resolution of the abductions issue is the most important for the Abe administration. We will continue to tackle the issue as a top priority. Under this policy, over the past two years, we started negotiations with North Korea, and have been exerting every effort in those negotiations toward the resolution of the abductions issue. We have been repeatedly emphasizing to the North Korean side that the resolution of this issue is the most important.

Unfortunately, the North Korean side has not yet reported investigation results that include concrete information on the abductees. The Government will continue to urge North Korea to expeditiously conduct the investigations, and to swiftly and sincerely report the results in order to achieve the return of all the abductees.

The resolution of this issue requires us to apply pressure on North Korea while thoroughly working with the international community. For the first time, in December of last year, the United Nations Security Council added “The Situation in the DPRK”, including the human rights situation to the list of issues of which it is seized. There was a comprehensive discussion, including on the abductions issue. At the end of last month, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) adopted the Resolution on the Situation of Human Rights in the DPRK, jointly submitted by Japan and the European Union (EU), which states the expectation that the Security Council will be continuously and actively engaged on this issue. With this and other developments, it is a fact that there is now more momentum toward the resolution of the abductions issue than ever before.

Responding to these developments in the international community, yesterday North Korea expressed its protest. Japan absolutely cannot accept that. I would like to continue to take a steadfast stance in our response to this matter. The important thing is that we have the North Korean side fully recognize that it will be difficult for them to envision their future without the resolution of the abductions issue. Based on that recognition, North Korea should immediately return the abductees to Japan. I want to again emphasize that.

We will fully utilize all measures in order to make it possible for all the abductees to soon set foot on Japanese soil. There may be a series of difficulties, but our mission will not be complete until the day comes when all the abductees and their family members can embrace each other. I bring this strong resolve to my work on the issue. As the family members of abductees are aging, we can afford no delays. Keeping that in mind, I will approach negotiations while adhering to the principles of ‘dialogue and pressure’ and ‘action for action’ and work toward the comprehensive resolution of this issue.

Today, I would like to once again express my determination to you, and I look forward to hearing your opinions and thoughts.”