Summit success formula: abductees for an apology

TOKYO -- Japanese and North Korean leaders will meet for the first time Tuesday, when Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visits Pyeongyang and Kim Jong-il, the National Defense Commission chairman with the object of restoring diplomatic ties between two historic Asian foes.

The two leaders will have two face-to-face talks in the one-day summit. Three main issues, prearranged at preparatory talks, await -- "liquidation of the past," a phrase covering Korean grievances over Japanese colonialism; the alleged abduction of Japanese citizens, and regional security.

Mr. Koizumi is expected to offer a formal apology for Japan's past aggression in Korea before and during World War II. The statement will be similar to one offered in 1995 by Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who expressed "deep remorse" for Tokyo's aggression against its Asian neighbors.

Pyeongyang has asked for monetary atonement for Japan's past wrongdoing as a precondition to normalizing diplomatic relations, along with the apology. Japan compensated the South in the form of economic cooperation when the two restored their ties in 1965, and Tokyo insists on a similar formula with Pyeongyang. The North is said to have accepted, but no amount has been made public.

The 11 missing Japanese citizens who Japan says were kidnapped by the North are a particularly thorny matter. Mr. Koizumi, for domestic political reasons, is determined to make tangible progress on the issue, which he says must be resolved before normalizing ties with Pyeongyang. The North has denied abducting anybody, but said it will cooperate to find missing persons as a humanitarian gesture. At the summit, the North will do no more than give information about the alleged abductees, Japanese media predicted.

Mr. Koizumi and Mr. Kim are expected to talk about Northeast Asian security, in particular the North's missile and nuclear developments. Japan aims to induce Pyeongyang to extend its missile-test moratorium beyond its planned expiration in 2003, and eventually to end its missile development and export.

Mr. Koizumi is scheduled to leave Japan at 6:30 a.m. and meet with Mr. Kim from 10 to noon. The second session, to last two or three hours, will begin at 1 p.m. Mr. Koizumi will have a press briefing alone. He is expected to return to Japan at 10:20 p.m.

by Nahm Yoon-ho