The Futility of Politicizing Japan’s Abduction Issue

Why true resolution requires recognizing North Korea as a state and confronting Japan’s own responsibility

I. The Return of Political Theater

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent appearance at the “National Rally to Demand the Return of Abductees” once again exposes how the abduction issue has become a convenient stage for political performance.

Her call for a summit with North Korea may sound decisive, but with Pyongyang maintaining that the issue is already “resolved,” such a move risks being little more than a symbolic gesture.
 

As in past administrations, Japan’s leaders continue to use the tragedy of abducted citizens as a tool to project moral authority and win domestic approval. But justice, when performed for applause, loses its substance.

 

II. The U.S.–Japan Cycle of Political Use

What makes the current situation more complex is the echo between Tokyo and Washington. Both governments, at various times, have turned the abduction issue—or the broader “North Korea problem”—into an instrument of public politics.

Takaichi, like her predecessors, appears eager to align with U.S. President Donald Trump, whose past engagement with Kim Jong-un was itself a form of political spectacle.

Yet the division of the Korean Peninsula is not merely a regional accident; it is a Cold War legacy for which the United States also bears responsibility. For Japan to treat this as a stand-alone “moral issue” detached from that context is to ignore the roots of the problem. True diplomacy demands structural understanding, not emotional dramatization.
 

III. The Danger of “Buying Back” Justice

Should Tokyo attempt to “buy back” its citizens through economic aid or compensation, the result could be dangerously counterproductive. Any such payment might end up funding the very weapons that threaten Japan’s own security—tactical nuclear arms or ballistic missiles.

 

This is not speculation but a lesson already hinted at by the failures of the 2002 Pyongyang Declaration. A policy that finances one’s own vulnerability is not diplomacy; it is folly.


IV. Japan’s National Responsibility

The abductions were crimes committed by North Korea, but the failure to prevent them was also a failure of the Japanese state. For years, Japan’s coastal surveillance, intelligence sharing, and diplomatic response were inadequate.

 

Recognizing this truth means accepting national responsibility. Japan must first acknowledge its inability to protect its citizens, apologize for past governmental missteps, and provide state compensation to the victims’ families.

 

Why true resolution requires recognizing North Korea as a state and confronting Japan’s own responsibility

 

V. Toward Real Resolution: Normalization and the Two-State Reality

The genuine path to resolving the abduction issue begins with recognizing North Korea as a state and normalizing diplomatic relations. Pyongyang itself has declared South Korea to be a separate, hostile country, and the dream of unification has already faded within both Koreas. Public opinion in the South increasingly favors coexistence over integration.

In this reality, Japan, South Korea, and the United States should jointly adopt a “Two-State Framework” for the Korean Peninsula—accepting both Koreas as enduring, legitimate entities.
 

If relations between Tokyo and Pyongyang are normalized under this premise, the abduction issue can finally be addressed as a formal diplomatic matter, within treaty negotiations rather than through political theater.

Working with Donald Trump—or any U.S. administration—should mean promoting this long-term stability, not escalating sanctions or hostility. Such a vision would ease America’s burden in Asia and strengthen Japan’s own security through diplomacy rather than confrontation.


VI. Restoring Responsibility to Politics

The abduction issue should not be an emotional ritual repeated for domestic consumption. It is a structural and historical challenge that demands both moral courage and strategic clarity. Justice does not lie in condemnation but in responsibility.

Japan must reclaim its political maturity by recognizing North Korea as a counterpart, confronting its own failures, and helping to build a peaceful regional order.

Only then can Japan move beyond the politics of performance—and toward the politics of responsibility.

(Adapted from the 2019 essay “Using the Abduction Issue for Political Gain Is Dishonorable,” fully revised in collaboration with ChatGPT (OpenAI GPT-5).)