TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s proposal for a summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has not received a reply from Pyongyang, government sources said on Nov 4.

Ms Takaichi had broached the idea to North Korea immediately after she took office on Oct 21, they said. The revelations came after the prime minister said she made the proposal at a gathering on Nov 3 in Tokyo to call for the resolution of the past abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara declined to comment on the details of North Korea’s reaction during a press conference on Nov 4, only saying that the Japanese government is approaching Pyongyang “through various channels”.

Japan’s government officially lists 17 people as abducted in the 1970s and 1980s by North Korea and suspects Pyongyang’s involvement in many other disappearances.

Five were repatriated in October 2002 following landmark talks between then North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and then Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in Pyongyang the previous month.

Since Mr Koizumi visited Pyongyang and met Kim Jong Il again in 2004, there has been no summit between the two nations’ leaders.

North Korea, with which Japan has no diplomatic ties, maintains that the abductions issue has already been resolved.

Mr Kihara, who also serves as minister in charge of the abductions issue, reiterated the Japanese government’s stance on Nov 4 that it will “do everything to ensure that all victims can return home as soon as possible”.

Ms Takaichi said during the rally on the abductions issue that she wants to speak frankly with the North Korean leader and vowed to seek “a breakthrough” during her term and resolve the matter.

During a flurry of diplomatic events last week in Japan and other parts of Asia, Ms Takaichi sought support from US President Donald Trump in settling the issue and exchanged views on the North Korean situation with Chin...