Japan's PM Kishida Said To Be Seeking Summit With N. Korea's Kim Jong-Un

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) circulated a report citing Kim Jong-un's influential sister Yo-jong as noting that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signalled his intention to hold a summit with the North Korean leader, although any such meeting would only be possible if a political decision was made by Tokyo "in actuality."

• Kim Yo-jong suggested that Kishida wanted to meet with Kim Jong-un personally as soon as possible, but also reiterated that Pyongyang is not interested in reopening the issue of the Japanese citizens kidnapped by North Korea in the 1970s/80s.
• Kishida admitted in parliament today that his government has been making overtures to North Korea and said that a summit was needed to secure the safe return of the Japanese abductees.
• A spectacular diplomatic win could help Kishida repair his approval ratings, which tanked amid a series of political scandals at home, threatening his leadership. The issue has long been on Japan's foreign policy agenda, with Kishida's predecessor Yoshihide Suga unsuccessfully seeking to open talks with Kim Jong-un.
• On the other hand, North Korea may try to leverage Kishida's domestic vulnerability for its own purposes. Pyongyang may manage the diplomatic process in such a way as to obstruct Japan's trilateral cooperation with South Korea and the US aimed at bolstering regional security and joint deterrence capabilities.