"We welcomed very much the six-party agreement … and I think, as with all the other members, we take pride in being a constructive partner in the entire process,” he said as talks got underway in Beijing. “The basic position is to try to find ways to … implement the basic agreement reached in the six-party talks earlier." Oshima said.

But Japan and North Korea have issues of their own. Japan's top priority is resolving the highly emotive issue of North Korean agents' abductions of Japanese citizens in the 1970s and 1980s. In 2002, Pyongyang admitted that 13 Japanese nationals were kidnapped, and returned five of them, claiming the other eight had died. Tokyo is demanding proof insisting some could still be alive.

North Korea, for its part, wants compensation for Japan's oppression and wartime aggressions during its colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula. Last week, the two sides met in Beijing for the first time in a year and began discussing their disputes, but saw no clear breakthrough.

"We'll see how it goes. These bilateral talks are just as important for us, but also they’re an important element in the six-party talk arrangement as well. But I have to warn myself that it's not an easy task,” Oshima said. “Across the board, we have many difficult issues, but if we are able to manage and resolve these issues and move forward, we'll be able to benefit from a contribution to stability in the region."

Oshima said Tokyo has "much to gain" should relations with Pyongyang improve saying Japan may then be able to play a larger role in resolving the nuclear issue, which will, in turn, contribute to regional stability.

Arirang News