North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly wants to normalize bilateral ties with Japan.

According to Japanese media, a former vice chair of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party, Taku Yamasaki, received such a message from South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who had a face-to-face meeting with Kim in mid-June.

Yamasaki had asked Chung during his visit to Japan in late May to convey to Kim Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s willingness to mend fences with the North by addressing Pyongyang’s nuclear issue and its past abduction of Japanese nationals.

Chung said the North Korean leader took the offer seriously, expressing his strong hope for normalization of Pyongyang-Tokyo ties.