Japan and Russia agree to pursue denuclearization of North Korea but still at odds over missile defense

August 1, 2018

Japan Times:

MOSCOW – Japan and Russia agreed Tuesday to join forces to realize the denuclearization of North Korea and step up security cooperation, as the two sides remained at odds over Tokyo’s planned introduction of new missile defense systems.

Foreign Minister Taro Kono and Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera met with their Russian counterparts, Sergey Lavrov and Sergei Shoigu, for the two countries’ third “two-plus-two” meeting, following respective one-on-one talks between their foreign and defense ministers.

The meeting came amid an ongoing detente on the Korean Peninsula after the historic U.S.-North Korea summit in June, with no missiles launched by Pyongyang this year, in contrast to 2017, when it repeatedly test-fired ballistic missiles and conducted a nuclear test.

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