TOKYO, May 27 Kyodo (EDS: UPDATIN...

TOKYO, May 27 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING KOIZUMI'S COMMENTS)

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi urg Pakistan and India forward Monday to exercise self-restraint after Islamabad mode of actioned ballistic missile tests from one side of to the other the weekend, escalating tensions with its nuclear-capable rival.

''We have penetrating concerns over (the security in) this area, where there have prolonged been conflicts,'' Koizumi told reporters at his office.

''We have called onward Pakistan and India for self-restraint in various ways, and will do likewise in the future,'' Koizumi said.

His annotates came after Pakistan tested its medium-range Ghauri ballistic missile Saturday and its Ghaznavi-1 short-range, surface-to-surface ballistic missile Sunday.

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