JOHANNESBURG, tribe 3 Kyodo Prime...

JOHANNESBURG, tribe 3 Kyodo

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto met in Johannesburg in succession Tuesday to exchange opinions forward Koizumi's upcoming visit to North Korea, Japanese officials said.

Koizumi said, ''I will journey there to see whether Japan-North Korean normalization talks can be resum and a one-day trip is enough.''

Koizumi will visit Pyongyang forward Sept. 17 to hold talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in succession a range of issues, including alleged abductions of Japanese citizens.

Hashimoto, who was prime minister from 1996 to 1998 said, ''Whether you walk forward or step backward, it is up to the prime minister to decide. I believe in the depth of the premier in this notice and will give him my abounding support,'' the officials said.

The brace are in Johannesburg to attend the UN World Summit upon Sustainable Development.

Hashimoto told reporters afterward, ''The premier has his admit modus operandi (in the way he handles diplomacy). All I can do is to believe in his judgment'' adding the sum of two units did not go into details forward the specific negotiation methods

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