Japan, North Korea to hold talks next week; Tokyo hoping for information on abductions

TOKYO – Japan and North Korea will hold talks next week that Tokyo hopes will shed light on a series of decades-old abductions.

The talks are scheduled to be held in Mongolia next Thursday and Friday, according to Japanese officials and North Korean media.

Japan wants information on the abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korean agents in the 1970s and '80s. Japan believes at least one abductee may still be alive and in the North, though North Korea denies this.

The issue, along with concerns over North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, has been a thorn in ties between the two countries, which do not have formal diplomatic relations. In August, they held their first bilateral talks in four years.