Japan’s Prime Minister may visit North Korea if it will help solve the abductions issue that has long soured ties between the two nations.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said today (Tuesday) it was too early for a decision.

But Japan’s Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Abe would go to North Korea if it would bring meaningful results.

North Korea last week agreed to reinvestigate its abductions of Japanese citizens in the 1970s and 80s.

The North admitted abducting 12 Japanese to train spies and returned five of them in 2002.

At the time, Japan’s then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi made a historic visit to the country.

But Japan believes some of the victims whom the North reported as dead are still alive, and that more citizens were abducted.