Japanese government on Friday decided to extend unilateral sanctions against North Korea by two years amid a nuclear missile threat from the reclusive state.
The government said the decision came amid virtually no progress on the issue of North Korea’s abductions of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980s.
Tokyo also condemned Pyongyang’s nuclear tests and a series of ballistic missile launches.
On Wednesday, Pyongyang had test-fired a ballistic missile into the East Sea, prompting a swift rebuke from Japan and South Korea.
Tokyo will continue its trade embargo and a ban on the entry into Japanese ports of North Korean ships and on chartered flights between the two countries, Kyodo News agency reported.
“Japan will exert all efforts for the comprehensive resolution of outstanding issues of concern, such as the abductions, nuclear, and missile issues,” Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters. (dpa/NAN)
