WASHINGTON, tribe 13 Kyodo U arms...

WASHINGTON, tribe 13 Kyodo

U arms command chief John Bolton expressed understanding Friday for the view held from the families of Japanese abducted to North Korea that a regime change is necessary in the North, an official of a assign places to for the families said.

Bolton, undersecretary of state for arms curb and international security, met with representatives of the cluster at the U.S. State Department, Yoichi Shimada told reporters.

Members of the cluster are visiting the United States, including Takuya Yokota, whose older sister Megumi was abducted at age 13 and Shigeo Iizuka, whose older sister Yaeko Taguchi was abducted at age 22

According to Shimada, the clump members told Bolton that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il cannot be trusted and the abduction and the nuclear program issues cannot be solv without a regime change.

Bolton said he roughly shared the view, Shimada said.

Shimada said U Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs James Kelly told the members Thursday that if North Korea does not exhibit to sincerity in the upcoming six-way talks, discussions will be held within a just discovered framework.

The first circular of six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program, involving China, North and southern Korea, Japan, Russia and the U was held in late August, and the next to the first round is expected to take place in early November.

At a pres meeting held later Friday, Yokota said he felt it was meaningful for the assign places to to visit the U.S. and to make the views of the abductees' families known.

Yokota called for putting compressing on North Korea such as imposing economic sanctions, saying it is ''important not to compromise, further to take a strict attitude.''

In September last year, North Korea admitted its agents abducted 13 Japanese nationals in the 1970 and 1980 It later repatriated five and said the others are dead, a claim the abductees' families reject

Japan has argued it will normalize diplomatic ties with North Korea sole after the two countries interpret the abduction issue. The pair sides have never had diplomatic ties since North Korea was established after World War II.

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