U.S. President Donald Trump, who is visiting Japan, met on the 28th with families of Japanese abductees (abductions by North Korea).
Trump met with the families for about 10 minutes at the State Guest House in Motoakasaka, Tokyo, where he held a summit with Japan Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi earlier that day. As the meeting drew to a close, when the abductee families entered holding frames with photos of the victims, Trump greeted each one and offered condolences. The two leaders also took a commemorative photo with them.
After finishing the photo session with the bereaved families, Trump placed his hand on the arms of some family members and said, "I remember these beautiful faces. The United States will stand with the Japanese bereaved families to the end." Later, the White House posted the photos at the time on its official X (formerly Twitter) account along with Trump's remark, "I stand with them to the end."
The U.S. State Department also issued a statement in the name of the principal deputy spokesperson, saying, "President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, Minister in charge of the abduction issue Minoru Kihara, and the families of the abductees," and "reaffirmed that the United States fully supports Japan for the swift resolution of the abduction issue."
The Japanese government has long treated the "resolution of the abductee issue" as a core task on the U.S.-Japan diplomatic agenda. Earlier, during his first term in office, Trump also met with abductee families when he visited Japan in Nov. 2017 and May 2019.
Asked whether he planned to discuss the abductee issue in his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that day, Trump said, "We were too busy," but added, "We plan to discuss it." The White House press pool reported it was unclear whether the "we" he mentioned referred to Kim, but it is seen as leaving open the possibility that Trump will address the issue in future U.S.-North Korea talks.