Defense and foreign affairs chiefs of Philippine and Japan urged North Korea to resolve the incidents of abduction as they condemned the kidnapping of the Japanese nationals over the years.

The call was made during the inaugural Japan-Philippines Foreign and Defense ministerial meeting of Foreign Affairs of Japan Hayashi Yoshimasa, Minister of Defense of Japan Kishi Nobuo, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro Locsin, Jr., and Secretary of Defense Delfin Lorenzana in Tokyo on Saturday.

"The Ministers condemn the abduction of Japanese citizens by North Korea over the years, and urge North Korea to immediately resolve the abductions issue," the joint statement said.

Defense and foreign affairs chiefs of Japan and the Philippines also condemn the development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles by North Korea.

"The Ministers condemned North Korea’s ongoing development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles and reiterated their commitment to achieving the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of all weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles of all ranges of North Korea," it stated.

"The Ministers urged North Korea to fully comply with all of its obligations under the relevant UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs), and emphasized the importance of the international community to fully implement the UNSCRs," it added. Robina Asido/DMS