Tokyo (dpa) – Japan's prime minister was expected to urge China to play a key role in dealing with North Korea, in the wake of Kim Jong Il's death that sparked fears about regional security. Yoshihiko Noda will use his first official visit to Beijing to ask Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao in separate meetings to push for resuming the stalled six-party talks on Pyongyang's denuclearization, Japanese government officials said. Kyodo News Service said Noda also planned to call for China's cooperation in resolving the issue of past abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea. Pyongyang, which has no diplomatic ties with Tokyo, says the abduction issue has been settled. As concerns grow over North Korea's stability, some have doubted Noda's diplomatic skills to build a collaboration with Beijing. Japan's premier will stress that China's role as chair of the six-party talks, is “very important,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said. The talks, stalled since 2008, involve the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States. Noda's trip beginning Sunday comes as bilateral relations are tainted by maritime collisions last year near the disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. The leaders are expected to agree to new mechanism to discuss maritime security, officials in Tokyo said. The world's second- and third-largest economies are also expected to establish a forum for talks on concluding a bilateral free trade agreement, Kyodo quoted officials as saying. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/T115z Tags: China, Diplomacy, Japan, North Korea Section: East Asia, Latest News
