Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Friday Japan welcomed the summit between the leaders of North and South Korea as a positive step. He also “strongly expects” Pyongyang to take concrete steps to carry out its promises. Japan would stay in close contact with the United States and South Korea over North Korea, Abe said. The PM added that Japan was “absolutely not” being left out of the denuclearization process, Reuters said. The North and South Korean leaders said they would pursue trilateral meetings with the US and that meetings involving the two Koreas, the US and China were also possible.