The ruling coalition and the Democratic Party of Japan agreed Tuesday on an amendment to a bill designed to bar North Korean ships from entering Japanese ports.

The bill is now expected to clear the Diet during the current session that runs through next month.

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi met North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang on Saturday and told him Japan would not impose economic sanctions on the North as long as it abides by the 2002 Pyongyang Declaration.