Japan will not resume normalization talks with North Korea unless there is progress on the abduction issue as well as Pyongyang's suspected nuclear weapons program, the top government spokesman said Monday.
The fact that "a nation this near possesses a nuclear weapon and is preparing to launch missiles is a great threat to the safety of our people," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said at a news conference. "If that question is not resolved, (Japan) will not go to the next step."
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is traveling to Pyongyang on Saturday for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il -- their second summit since September 2002.