Two decades have passed since former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s historic 2002 visit to North Korea, the first ever by a Japanese leader. At the time, it raised hopes that an important landmark would be reached in Japan’s efforts to deal with legacies stemming from its wartime past.

To our great disappointment, the relationship between Japan and North Korea has grown worse rather than better.

The blame for the deterioration of the bilateral relationship should be placed on North Korea. The secluded country has continued to develop nuclear weapons and missiles in the face of strong condemnation from the international community. It has also refused to take sincere actions to atone for its past grave crime of abducting foreign civilians.

Even though we remain bitterly disappointed by Pyongyang’s outrageous behavior, we cannot allow this situation to go unchallenged.

At the time of Koizumi’s visit, North Korea asserted that most of the Japanese citizens it had abducted were already dead. While it was not clear whether Pyongyang was telling the truth, Koizumi signed the Pyongyang Declaration, which was intended to serve as a foundation for the two countries’ efforts to normalize their diplomatic relationship under North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

To achieve a diplomatic breakthrough to solve a raft of pending bilateral issues, Tokyo should return to the original goals stated in the declaration and make an all-out effort to reopen dialogue with Pyongyang.

In the declaration, Japan expressed “deep remorse and a heartfelt apology” over its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula and committed itself to providing economic cooperation and other kinds of aid to North Korea after a formal diplomatic relationship was established.

The document also addressed wider regional security challenges that went beyond the bilateral relationship. The two countries pledged to work together to “maintain and strengthen the peace and stability of Northeast Asia” and resolve “security problems, including nuclear and missile issues, by promoting dialogue among the countries concerned.”

At that time, North Korea was pursuing an economic policy based on the assumption that it would receive economic aid from Japan. Clearly, Pyongyang yearned to improve its ties with Tokyo.

On Sept. 15, North Korea criticized Japan for rendering the accord “null and void” by imposing sanctions to punish Pyongyang for its nuclear and missile programs.

Nevertheless, the Kim Jong Un regime clearly recognizes the value of the declaration as a “milestone” for the improvement of bilateral ties. Under a dictatorship based on absolute loyalty to the top leader, a document signed by the late Kim Jong Il, then the nation’s paramount leader, apparently has special importance.

The Japanese government is racing against the clock in its efforts to resolve the abduction issue as the families of the abductees are now well advanced in years.

North Korea kept claiming the issue has already been settled. But Pyongyang has a duty to offer a sincere and honest explanation about the fate of the missing Japanese and disclose all the relevant facts.

We strongly urge North Korea to revive a special investigative committee that it unilaterally disbanded six years ago and conduct a fresh examination, and publish its findings quickly.

The Japanese government’s policy for dealing with North Korea has been less transparent than it should be.

Some Japanese officials involved in the negotiations with the North said the regime has acknowledged that certain Japanese nationals spirited to the country, including Minoru Tanaka, who disappeared in 1978, are still living there.

But the Japanese government has not confirmed or disclosed this fact. This is baffling and runs counter to the government’s stated policy of seeking the return of all abduction victims. The government needs to explain the reason for withholding this information.

The families of abductees are calling for an early resumption of dialogue between the two governments. Dialogue is the only way to remove deep mutual distrust between the two nations.

We hope the government will use the Pyongyang Declaration to pry open the closed door to constructive talks with North Korea.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Sept. 17