WORLD> Asia-Pacific
Japan opposition DPJ won't shift course on DPRK
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-08-06 19:38

TOKYO: Japan's opposition Democratic Party will maintain Tokyo's tough stance towards the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) if it wins an election this month, a senior party lawmaker said on Thursday.

The party would also insist on progress in a feud over Japanese citizens kidnapped decades ago before giving aid under any multilateral nuclear disarmament deal, said Akihisa Nagashima, deputy secretary-general of the Democratic Party.

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Japan's emphasis on the abductions, which still stoke public anger over tales of a schoolgirl and others snatched from their homeland, put Tokyo at odds with other countries when it refused to provide energy aid promised to the DPRK under a 2007 six-party agreement to end Pyongyang's nuclear programme.

"There is no practical option for us other than to seek a comprehensive solution linking the abductees problem and the nuclear and missile issues within the framework of the six-party talks," Nagashima said in an interview with Reuters.

"Naturally, within that, there can be differences in nuance of whether to stress dialogue or pressure. But as a practical issue, as long as the abductee issue is not resolved or there is no progress, there will be no large scale aid (for the DPRK)."

Some analysts have speculated that former US President Bill Clinton's visit to the DPRK this week to win the release of two jailed American journalists could open the way to talks between Washington and Pyongyang over the latter's nuclear weapons programme.

But Nagashima said Tokyo need not worry about being left out of the diplomatic loop should progress be made in future negotiations on Pyongyang's nuclear activities.

The DPRK has said the six-party talks were dead. They had brought together the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, China and Russia.

"For the six-party talks, which seek the abandonment of the North's nuclear weapons (programme), to move forward, ultimately aid from Japan will be needed," Nagashima said.

"If you look at a snapshot in time, it may appear as if Japan is being left behind, but ultimately, without Japanese aid, the deal will not be clinched."

The Democratic Party has a good shot at winning an election on August 30. Opinion polls show it is ahead of the ruling conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).