Trump Meets with Japanese Abductee Families

Tokyo, Oct. 28 (Jiji Press)–U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. government would do its best to help resolve the decades-old issue of abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea during a meeting with the victims’ family members. “We always have this in mind,” Trump said of the abduction issue at the meeting at the State Guest House, Akasaka Palace, in Tokyo. “We will do everything within our power.” Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also attended the meeting. The families expressed hope that Trump would hold a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. When asked about the possible summit, the president said he would discuss the matter. The Japanese government had worked to set the meeting between the abductees’ families and Trump to coincide with the president’s visit to Japan. The meeting was initially set between the families and Rubio, but Trump was able to attend for about three minutes for a brief chat and photo session. Takuya Yokota, head of a group of abductee families, later asked Rubio to help resolve the abduction issue with his “strong leadership to build peace.” Yokota’s sister, Megumi, was abducted at the age of 13. “I felt that the president was sincerely thinking about this issue,” Yokota’s mother, Sakie, 89, told a press conference after the meeting. “I’m sure he will make appropriate remarks on this issue (at a U.S.-North Korea summit).” Trump had previously met with the abductee families during his visits to Japan in 2017 and 2019. “It was a very meaningful opportunity to reaffirm the United States’ full support and strong bilateral cooperation,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said of the meeting. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]