Japan, DPRK hold talks on return of Japanese remains

SHENYANG - Red Cross officials of Japan and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) held talks in northeastern China's Shenyang City on Monday on how to collect and return the remains of Japanese who died in the country during World War II.

Ri Ho-rim, secretary general of the DPRK's Red Cross, who headed the Pyongyang delegation, told reporters that both sides discussed the return of the Japanese citizens' remains and reached consensus on continuing talks in the future to resolve the issue.

Osamu Tasaka, director general of the International Department of the Japanese Red Cross, said his delegation had expressed to the DPRK side the wishes of Japanese people to visit the graves of their relatives in the DPRK and bring their remains home.

The talks, the first of their kind since August 2012, also drew diplomats from both countries.

An official with the Japanese Foreign Ministry, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two countries' Red Cross societies will consult with their governments after this meeting and will consider holding inter-government talks.

The 2012 Japan-DPRK Red Cross talks led to the first government-to-government meeting between Japan and DPRK in four years. But the follow-up meetings were called off after Pyongyang launched a rocket in December 2012.