U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright on Monday urged Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori to take up North Korea's missile and nuclear energy programs in Tokyo's dialogue with Pyongyang, a Japanese official said.
In their meeting at the Prime Minister's Official Residence, Albright told Mori that although there were positive developments regarding North Korea, the U.S. is concerned about the country's activities in the two areas, the official said.
Noting recent developments with North Korea should be regarded with "balanced euphoria," Albright reportedly told Mori that the United States is also taking up Japan's concerns over the alleged abductions of Japanese by North Korean agents, in its talks with North Korea.
She said Japan and South Korea should also address the missile and nuclear issues with the country.
Mori said that Japan, the U.S. and South Korea should continue cooperation on international concerns, the official said.
Japan and North Korea are set to hold their long-postponed second round of negotiations on normalizing ties in Tokyo later this month.
A key obstacle in the talks is the alleged abduction of at least 10 Japanese by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s. Pyongyang continues to deny the allegations, but has promised to search for the "missing persons."
On the Middle East peace process, Albright said she and President Bill Clinton will do their best to reach an agreement, and asked for Japan's support for an accord once it is reached, the official said.
Talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders failed at Maryland's Camp David after 15 days of intense negotiations last week.