nationals including the abductees will be started by the north korean defense commission and other agencies will which can make decisions at a national level. this sort of organization structure has -- will be mobilized and this is an unprecedented arrangement. that is what we judged. therefore based on the principle of action to action, japan will lift some of the sanctions it has been imposing on it own. but this is just a beginning. we will brace ourselves and do our utmost to reach a comprehensive solution of this issue. >> abe spoke after meeting with members of the national security council. he said north korean leaders

will give a special committee the power to launch an effective investigation into the nation. his government will lift sanctions that include restrictions on travel port calls by ships and tight regulations on money transfers. officials from japan and north korea met in may in stockholm to form the framework of an agreement. north korean leaders have been weighed down by international sanctions for years as punishment for their nuclear missile tests but the impositionings by japan were much tougher. >> reporter: the u.n. security council adopted a be resolution immediately after north korea conducted a nuclear test in 2006. it called on member states to freeze goods that could lead to

weapons of mass destruction. japan imposed individual sanctions. they banned all imports and exports from the north. north koreans are no longer allowed to enter japan except for people carrying special permits. north korean residents living in japan can still travel between the two countries but japanese officials are discouraged from traveling to the north. north korean ships and kmarterred flights have been banned from entering japan. rules overseeing certain funds transfers have been tightened. japanese officials have decided to lift three of the country's individual sanctions against north korea. this came after they confirmed that northee yeah's special committee will conduct a thorough investigation over the abductees.

nhk world has back ground on why japan has taken such harsh measures. >> reporter: north korean agents kidnapped 17 japanese nationals in the 1970s and '80s. the asians used the abductees to learn more about the language and culture as they did with citizens from other nations. after years of denials, late leader kim jong-il admitted that the abductions had happened and apologized. he allowed five abductees to return to japan. north korean authorities later declared the issue resolved. but that wasn't good enough for the japanese government. over the years it pressed for a fresh investigation and posed sanctions as it waited. these included blocking north

korean citizens ships and flights from entering japan adding new checks on money transfers to the north and banning all imports and exports between the nations. as a result, the north's shipments of marine products and mushrooms to japan went from $150 million to zero. and japan's exports of electric appliances and secondhand vehicles to the north fell from roughly $70 million to zero. representatives of both countries continued to negotiate behind closed doors. but they made little progress. prime minister shinzo abe gave the discussions a push in part because relatives of the abductees were getting older. he stressed the outcome would

represent the first step toward normalizing relations. north korean negotiators promised a thorough re-investigation. in return, japanese officials agreed to allow north korean ships to make port calls for humanitarian purposes. they also lifted restrictions on reporting money transfers to the north and on travel between the two nations. the north koreans have long pushed for humanitarian ships to be able to enter japanese ports. the vessels can transport large quantities of medicine, food, and supplies back to north korea. but officials in tokyo won't let one ship make the journey. they say it's not covered by the agreement. the north koreans dispute that. >> translator: we have to

discuss the issue with japan because it is a humanitarian ship. >> reporter: an expert on north korean issues says the move will be a symbolic of improved relations. >> translator: allowing north korean officials to visit japan would mean talks could be held here. their aim in restoring ties with japan is to get a chance to talk to the united states. their ultimate concern over security is the u.s. so establishing ties with an ally of the u.s. is beneficial in the long term. considering worsening relations with south korea and china. >> reporter: the north koreans say the special investigative committee is authorized to probe all relevant organizations. japanese officials are expected to study whether to lift more sanctions depending on the

outcome. for those of you just joining us, japan's prime minister -- shinzo abe says he plans to lift some sanctions against north korea once investigators start a probe into the abduction of japanese citizens. >> translator: the results of the talks between japan and north korea, the fate of all japanese nationals including the abductees an investigation involving north korean national defense commission and the north korean national security agency will take place mobilizing an entity which is capable of making decisions at national level. that institution will take the forefront and we have judged

this is an unprecedented arrangement. therefore based on the principle of action to action we will lift some of the sanctions japan has been imposing on its own. but this is just a beginning. we will brace ourselves and will do our utmost to reach a comprehensive solution of this issue. >> abe spoke after meeting with members of the national security council. he said north korean leaders will give a special committee a power to conduct an investigation. his government will lift sanctions that include restrictions on travel, port calls by ships and tight regulations on money transfers. officials from japan and north korea met in may in stockholm to talk about the abductions issue.

they formed the framework of an agreement. joining us is our reporter who has covered issues on the north korean peninsula for many years. as we have been hearing the administration -- abe administration has decided to lift some sanctions. what do you make of this? >> well, the easing of sanctions will mark a breakthrough in the abduction issue. it's been -- for more than a decade. the coalition in 2002 after summit talks. the two sides agreed to take steps for compensation for japan's colonial rule and for the abduction of japanese nationals. the goal was to normalize ties. north korea recognized that it has received economic assistance from japan once ties resume. kim jong-il aloud five abduckees

to return home. he conducted a solo investigation because he was anticipating a huge amount of economic assistance from japan. but the report on how some of the abductees died was full of inconsistencies which caused an outcry from the japanese public. he insisted that the issue had already been resolved. then four years later, the north agreed to an investigation but soon changed its mind citing the resignation of the japanese prime minister. >> so why is north korea approaching japan now? >> well, i think what has prompted the change of attitude this time are the circumstances surrounding north korea and a shift in japan's sentiment. the committee has imposed a

series of sanctions on the north in response to nuclear tests and missile launches that has left the north korean economy in shambles after kim jong-il died in 2007, kim jong-un took over as leader. he has yet to follow through on his promise. as well, the north's traditional ties with china have cooled while its relationship with south korea has become worse. meanwhile, the families of japanese abductees are getting old. there is little time left for them. calls for an early resolution of the issue are intensifying in japan. so abe took action to move the issue forward. in other words a coincidence of interests between the two countries led to the agreement, i suppose. >> the north koreans say they will conduct a thorough row

investigation into the abduction of japanese citizens. how do you think they will do this? >> one of them is create a committee of a special investigation committee the north is sitting at even if the committee is given full authority, japanese officials won't be able to join in the probe. the north still insists that eight of the officially recognized abductees are already dead. the japanese want japanese policies living in the north to repatriation. japanese officials thought that by widening their scope it will be less complicated for the north to return japanese citizens. the recent talks in beijing, officials were described as being sincere. so i expect the investigation will proceed smoothly. to what extent should japan lift

its sanctions depends on north korea's response. >> thank you for your insights. this is our lead story breaking to us this hour. japan's prime minister hass made a diplomatic decision aimed at solving a long-standing and emotional issue. shinzo abe plans to lift some sanctions against north korea once investigators start a fresh probe into the abduction of japanese citizens. agents from the north carried out the kip kidd nappings decades ago. >> translator: on the results of the talks between japan and north korea, an investigation into the fate of all japanese nationals including the abductees will be held involving the north korean international defense commission and the national security agencies and other institutions. a body of decision make willing be mobilized to the forefront.

we have decided -- we have judged this is an unprecedented arrangement. >> translator: now i have some reports to make. on july 1st, in beijing, japan, north korean director level talks -- or governmental talks were held. the prime minister, foreign minister kishida and minister -- in charge of abduction had held a meeting and then after that we had attendance of the justice minister and we held a nine ministers meeting of the national security council and as a result, the special

investigation committee in north korea will be launched on the 4th of july to conduct investigation into all the missing japanese nationals in north korea. and based on that, we have decided to lift some of the sanctions that japan has been imposing on its own. and as for the measures to be taken, we will be following the agreement, which was made in may, but as for the details we will be announcing this officially tomorrow. the special investigation committee that north korea will be setting up this time is included in the materials that were distributed to you. and let me cite some important points. that we have written on that

document. first, the special investigation commission -- committee is given authority from the national defense commission to investigate all the agencies and the committee's chairman will be served by an official of the national security agency. and based on that, they -- the -- all the officials include the national security agency as well as the military commission. the abduckee victims, the missing persons, and the remains of the japanese nationals left in north korea and the spouses of north keans -- japanese spouses of north koreans, subcommittees will be established and the investigation will not give priority to certain areas, all areas of the investigation will

move forward in parallel. the third point is that the north korean side is prepared to start up the investigative committee and to begin instigations and they understand that recently i said that the investigation should be started within one year. and they have said that they're prepared to begin promptly. and taking into all these elements comprehensively, the government has judged that the north korea side has made certain -- in any case what is important is what follows from now on. the agreement between japan and north korea need to be carried out appropriately. and we need to make steady progress towards the resolution of issues between japan and

north korea. the resolution of the abduction issue is a top priority issue and we will continue to work with every effort towards the comprehensive resolution of this matter. this is all i have to say. >> i'm -- from nhk. the start of the special investigative committee is supposed to be tomorrow. and when will the north koreans actually begin the investigations? >> the north korean side, as i have just said, says that all preparations are finished to begin the investigation so we understand that the investigation will begin immediately. >> as for the japanese government's measures, when north korea's investigation begins, in order to secure transparency what are the measures that will be taken, for example, will we be sending fact-finding missions?

>> well, at the venue of the government -- inter-governmental talks we understood that all the authority would be given to this committee to investigate all the agencies in north korea. and as a result of the talks we looked into the internal system in north korea in which of course to a certain extent is not known but north korea has decided that this commission will be given a special authority from the national defense commission and the person in charge is an official of the national security agency. and also from the people's

military commission. and so it has an effective force and the set up cerelevant to a certain extent. so that is what we judged. and this investigation, we will look into the progress of the investigation and is this was referred to in the but we -- regarding japan's fact-finding mission or investigative commission to be sent to north korea is agreed between the two countries so japanese officials can visit north korea to be briefed on the progress of the investigation.

and the north korean side has told japan that in accordance to the progress of the investigation, they will meet with japanese officials and will seek japan's cooperation and ask to share any documents and materials and information that japan would have. that is what we have in mind. and any case, officials from japan will go to north korea and meet with relevant officials and visit relevant sites related to the investigation and they will receive reports to the japanese officials can keep tabs and check up. >> i'm from -- you said there were unclear points still

remaining. >> that was yoshihide suga. he says north korea says the investigation into the abductions of japanese nationals will begin right away. the north has set up a special committee to carry out the investigation. now north korean leaders will give the special committee the power to launch an effective investigation into any organization in the reclusive nation. in return the japanese government will lift sanctions that include restrictions on travel, port calls by ships and tight regulations on money transfers. now this easing of sanctions will happen once north korea begins a new investigation into the abduction of japanese citizens in the 1970s and '80s. for those of you just joining us this is our lead story this hour. japan's prime minister has made a diplomatic decision aimed at solving a long standing and emotional issue.

shinzo abe plans to lift some sanctions against north korea once investigators start a fresh probe into the kidnapping of japanese citizens. >> translator: the results of the inter-governmental talks between japan and north korea, an investigation into the fate of all japanese nationals will be conducted involving the north korean national defense commission, the national security agency and other bodies. and a body capable of decision making at the national level will be mobilized to the forefront. we have judged that this is an unprecedented arrangement. therefore, based on the principle of action to action, we will lift some of the sanctions japan has been imposing on its own. but this is just the beginning.

we will brace ourselves and will do our utmost to reach a comprehensive solution of this issue. >> abe spoke after meeting with members of the national security council. as we've been reporting, abe said north korean leaders will give a special committee the power to launch an effective investigation into any organization. in return, the japanese government will lift sanctions that include restrictions on travel, port calls by ships and tight regulations on money transfers. officials from japan and north korea met in may in stockholm to talk about the abductions issue. they formed a framework of an agreement. now more details on this developing story as they come in. let's shift gears now and see what is making headlines in the business world. ai uchida joins us with that.

some financial leaders fear that leaders are using low interest rates to take more risks and they warn that could bring instability in the financial system. but janet yellen says she won't pushed into raising rates. >> i do not see a need for monetary policy to deviate from a primary focus to obtain price stability and maximum employment in order to address financial stability concerns. >> yellen was speaking to an audience at the international monetary fund. she said staff members at the fed have refocused their efforts to limit the buildup of risk. imf head christine la guard and others have warned policymakers to ensure their changes do not bring about instability. the dow jones industrial average has been breaking record after record. and analysts see some signs it may be overheated.

some say the fed's rate policy is fueling these trends. investors in tokyo followed wall street's lead. but tokyo stock prices are struggling to maintain the gains we saw at the open. analysts say investors will be staying on the sidelines ahead of the u.s. jobs report later today. they're hoping the numbers will come in line with forecasts and confirm the economic recovery is on firmer footing. the dollar was bought against the yen during new york hours on stronger than expected private sector jobs growth and the dollar is maintaining those gains this morning. the euro is slightly weaker against the dollar. if focus today will be the european central bank policy meeting and what president mario draghi will have to say afterwards. in other markets in the asia-pacific region. the kospi is trading lower by .25%. in shanghai the key index is

trading higher by a touch. the people at an arm of toshiba have found fewer opportunities at home so they are look to europe to sell some of their nuclear technology. they are expected to win a $5 billion deal to build a plant in bulgaria. officials with toshiba's westinghouse subsidiary are expected to sign the contract to build the plant. it will generate enough electricity to power thousands of homes. the company is considering taking a stake in the firm that will operate the plant. all nuclear plants in japan are currently offline. managers of electronic forms have been look oversees. those at toshiba and hitachi have acquired power companies that plan to build power plants in britain.

japanese workers turn out products known around the world. but much of what they make is imported from abroad. steel from australia for

. geepg. i'm tavis smiley. six-time emmy nominee, hugh laurie. the long-running fox series "house." can the copper bottom band performing classic songs from his second blues album. the conversation with hugh laurie coming up right now. ♪