Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe tells UN that the time for talk is over on North Korea

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Wednesday that countries need to unite to enforce sanctions and apply pressure on North Korea to abandon its nuclear and missile programmes. Japanese Prime Minister said:  “Now is not the time for dialogue. Now is the time to apply pressure”, and said: “We can’t be satisfied that the UN has approved new sanctions against North Korea”. “What’s crucial now is to put sanctions into effect without lapses and that requires close cooperation with China and Russia.” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said: “Whether or not we can put an end to the provocations by North Korea is dependent upon the solidarity of the international community”. In contrast, Japan’s Asian rival China and Russia, have called repeatedly for a return to international diplomacy and talks with North Korea to resolve the crisis over Pyongyang’s weapons programmes.