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US President Joe Biden (left) shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida following the trilateral summit with Korea at Camp David in August 2023. (Reuters/Yonhap)

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has revealed that his administration has been making “high-level approaches” to North Korea in attempts to arrange a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

On Sunday, CNN aired an interview with Kishida just ahead of his state visit to the US. Kishida said that the Japanese government has been making “high-level” outreach to North Korea to solve “outstanding issues” and pave the path for more stable relations. It was an acknowledgment that the Japanese government has been the proactive party in attempts to arrange a summit, and that talks have been underway at a high level. The various concerns that Kishida mentioned likely refer to Japanese citizens abducted by North Korean authorities.

Yet despite Japan’s repeated efforts, North Korea continues to appear uninterested, making it unlikely that a summit will be held anytime soon. Kim Yo-jong, a high-ranking member of North Korea’s ruling party and the sister of leader Kim Jong-un, announced late last month that Pyongyang “will pay no attention to and reject any contact and negotiations with the Japanese side.”

During the interview, Kishida referred to recent movements taken by China, North Korea and Russia as the reason why Japan has decided to "fundamentally reinforce its defense capabilities” and why Tokyo has “greatly changed Japan's security policy on these fronts." Kishida called North Korea’s arms shipments to Russia and China-Russia military exercises “concerning.”

Kishida declared that “it is important to convey a firm message to North Korea and China that it is important for the peace, stability and prosperity of the international community to maintain a free and open international order based on the rule of law.”

Kishida also said that “there is a unilateral attempt to change the status quo, by force, in both the East China Sea and South China Sea,” referring to China’s maritime aggression.

The Japanese prime minister claimed that the world is at a “historic turning point,” and that the US-Japan alliance is more important than ever.

By Lee Bon-young, Washington correspondent

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