Japan moves to ease North Korean sanctions
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Thursday that his government will lift some of its restrictions against North Korea.
Currently, the hermit kingdom's citizens, ships, and commerce are banned from Japan, but Abe's decision will ease travel restrictions and "allow port calls for humanitarian purposes," The Associated Press reports.
The announcement comes after North Korea agreed to reinvestigate the fate of at least 12 Japanese citizens believed to have been abducted in the 1970s and 1980s by North Korean agents. Abe told the AP he was "satisfied" with how North Korea is treating the investigation so far, calling the power granted to the investigative committee "unprecedented."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Abe's decision is expected to be formally approved by his cabinet on Friday. The AP reports that Japan will continue to follow U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs, which include an arms trade ban and a freeze of North Korean assets.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
More than 2,000 dead following massive earthquake in Morocco
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mexico's next president will almost certainly be its 1st female president
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
North Korea's Kim to visit Putin in eastern Russia to discuss arms sales for Ukraine war, U.S. says
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Gabon's military leader sworn in following coup in latest African uprising
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published