. >> noda also said he spoke on the phone with south korean president lee myung-bak on monday and they agreed to cooperate to prepare for any emergency. noda referred to the issue of north korea's abductions of japanese nationals. saying the government will do its best to gather information to determine how the issue is affected by kim's death. for more insight, nhk world spoke with deputy foreign minister, hitoshi tanaka. >> translator: i was surprised at the news of kim's death, there's no reason to believe that north korea has solidified its transition of power. we have to keep a close watch on the situation for the time being. i negotiated with north korea behind the scenes for one year. during the negotiations the country made decisions through talks among officials. north korea is under dictatorship. but it seems to allow a group of officials around the leader to make decisions. north korea is not an ordinary society. for example, people are starving because of a food crisis. in a normal country, it wouldn't be surprising if people staged strong protests. but the north korean gov

it's a sign that president lee myung bak is softening his country's stance on the north. another sign he says he has no intention of being hostile toward his neighbor. nhk world's susumu kojima reports from seoul. >> reporter: president lee myung bak met thursday with key members of his ruling party and opposition. he explained how his government has responded to the death of kim so far. lee said he's willing to soften south korea's stance toward the north. that marks something of a change. lee's government has taken a tough approach on relations with the north. especially since the sinking of a south korean ship and the shelling of a south korean island last year. kim's death puts the lee administration on alert. but also showed it's ability to be flexible. earlier this week, the government announced it will not send an official condolence delegation to north korea. but it's not stopping private organizations and civilians from reaching out. south korea did not permit official visits or expressions of condolence when kim jong il's father and predecessor, kim il sung died

it's a sign that president lee myung bak is softening his country's stance on the north. another sign he says he has no intention of being hostile toward his neighbor. nhk world's susumu kojima reports from seoul. >> reporter: president lee myung bak met thursday with key members of his ruling party and opposition. he explained how his government has responded to the death of kim so far. lee said he's willing to soften south korea's stance toward the north. that marks something of a change. lee's government has taken a tough approach on relations with the north. especially since the sinking of a south korean ship and the shelling of a south korean island last year. kim's death puts the lee administration on alert. but also showed it's ability to be flexible. earlier this week, the government announced it will not send an official condolence delegation to north korea. but it's not stopping private organizations and civilians from reaching out. south korea did not permit official visits or expressions of condolence when kim jong il's father and predecessor, kim il sung died

this comes after south korean president lee myung-bak spoke with president obama shortly after midnight both agreed to closely monitor the events. they are committed to, quote, stability on the korean peninsula. and we'll continue to follow it throughout the day on our website nbcwashington.com. >>> several republican presidential candidates are doubling their efforts between christmas and new year's. other presidential candidates, including rick perry and michele bachmann are entering the homestretch in iowa with bus tours. bachmann is on a ten-day bus tour through iowa's 99 counties. she took time off the campaign trail to talk to david gregory about the nation's debt on "meet the press." >> we're acting like greece and italy. that's what people are frustrated with. they want us to act like a first world nation, not like what president barack obama is doing. he's acting like we're a banana republic. we've got to get our act together and stop spending money that we don't have. >> the iowa caucuses are january the 3rd. >>> the two major changes drivers are going to see on the [ child ]

president barack obama and south korean president lee myung-bak agreed by phone to closely monitor thes. meantime they may postpone decisions on reengaging the country in nuclear talks and providing it with food aid. officials say the u.s. is concerned about any changes

it says north korea will never deal with south korean president, lee myung bak's administration. it lashed out at lee's government for restricting visits to kim jong il's funeral. but despite its confrontational tone, the defense commission also says north korea's armed forces and people will work to improve relations on the korean peninsula. observers say this appears to be an effort to boost the north's image ahead of next year's presidential and parliamentary elections in south korea. >>> the number of foreign tourists visiting japan is falling as a nuclear crisis continueand the value of the currency rises. but some innovative people are coming up with new kinds of tour packages that are attracting foreign tourists. >> reporter: three americans visit japan for a one-week tokyo vacation. they take in popular tourist sites around the city and travel to mount fuji. but unlike most tourists, they don't stay in a hotel. they stay in a japanese house. this university student lives here with friends and he invited the three americans to stay free of charge. >> kampai! >> reporter: hi

it says north korea will never deal with south korean president, lee myung bak's administration. it lashed out at lee's government for restricting visits to kim jong il's funeral. but despite its confrontational tone, the defense commission also says north korea's armed forces and people will work to improve relations on the korean peninsula. observers say this appears to be an effort to boost the north's image ahead of next year's presidential and parliamentary elections in south korea. >>> the number of foreign tourists visiting japan is falling as a nuclear crisis continues and the value of the currency rises. but some innovative people are coming up with new kinds of tour packages that are attracting foreign tourists. >> reporter: three americans visit japan for a one-week tokyo vacation. they take in popular tourist sites around the city and travel to mount fuji. but unlike most tourists, they don't stay in a hotel. they stay in a japanese house. this university student lives here with friends and he invited the three americans to stay free of charge. >> kampai! >> reporter:

he also needs to stay in close touch with his close friend lee myung-bak in south korea who up to now taken a fairly harsh line toward north korea and if lee myung-bak decides in his last year to be more accommodating and flexible toward north korea it would be make it easier for president obama to follow that line. >> ifill: professor hwang, he sees an opportunity using china as a go between. other commentators say there's nothing new under the son-- speaking of his successor. which do you think is true? >> i think in this case the proper procedure could be to continue with obama's policy, what we have deemed strategic patience regarding north korea. >> ifill: what does that mean? >> well strashgs t.j. i can patience has essentially been a mixture of containment in the sens of containing or deterring north korea's aggressive behavior, including its proliferation activities. at the same time, limiting engagement to the proven track record or the existing avenues, including the space walks as ways... six party talks as way to draw north korea out. that may have not been the most effect

members of president lee myung-bak's administration are monitoring how citizens are view north korea. they are also watching the new regime of kim jong-un. they want to see what this transition of power will mean for inter-korean relations and the reclusive country's nuclear program. >> nhk world's anna jung in seoul. >>> people in china are also actively following the events in north korea. the countries are traditional allies. nhk world is covering that angle from our studio in beijing. >> using the images coming out of pyongyang. chinese tv also reported on kim jong-il's life in detail. north koreans went to their country's consulate in the city of dandong to watch the funeral on tv. they brought flowers. across the border, several north korean soldiers could be seen working with guns. china's foreign ministry spokesperson said the country's embassy and consulates in north korea will keep their flags at half staff until thursday. chinese leaders have been offering their condolences to north korea. president hu jintao and others rushed to its embassy in beijing after they learned of

political analysts say the matter could cause new diplomatic friction ahead of south korean president lee myung-bak's visit to japan on saturday. >>> next we go to patchari raksawong in bangkok to find out what's going on in the region. >> pakistani prime minister is seeking assurances from the united states as his government reassesses bilateral relations. ties between the two countries have deteriorated following a deadly air strike against pakistani forces last month. gilani made a statement on tuesday setting up conditions necessary to maintain cooperation. >> under no circumstances would we accept flagrant transdirection of our territorial frontiers. this remains our base line and there can be no compromise on sovereignty. >> pakistan's summoned its ambassadors to 15 countries including the united states, china and india to attend a rare two-day meeting to discuss policy towards the united states. gilani urged the u.s. to offer assurances that pakistan would never again come under cross border attack from international forces stationed in afghanistan. last month's air strike on pakistani border

. >> reporter: lee myung-bak held a meeting with his cabinet to talk about this issue. following discussions the government announced it will not send an official condolence to north korea. but it will allow the families of the late south korean president, kim dae-jung and chung mong-hun to pay condolence visit to the north. that's because pyongyang sent delegations to seoul when kim dae-jung died. before president lee's decision, about 100 people gathered in the streets of seoul to speak out about any condolence visit. conservatives say expressions of sympathy are unwarranted as long as the north refuses to apologize for last year's attack on yeonpyeong island. >> there are many victims out there. yeongpeong island was attacked about a year ago. i don't think the government should send a delegation to north korea for the death of the person responsible for such incidents. >> reporter: however, reformers in south korea say offer ing condolences could provide an opportunity. >> translator: although relations with north korea are not good at present, we should send a cond

meanwhile, in a meeting with south korean leaders take, president lee myung-bak said this is men to thehow it holds no animosity. >>> uncertain future still has investors a bit cautious, though, seoul's kospi closed slightly lower today at the end of the session on thursday. >>> north korea has been notoriously guarded and very private but since kim jong-il's death, some people are actually coming out and sharing their stories, including his former personal sushi chef. he tells us what it was like working in the kim household. >> reporter: as north korea mourns the loss of its dear leader, the world is anxiously waiting for his youngest son, kim jong-un to reveal what sort of successor he will be. one man with a personal insight is kenji kfujimoto. he would be invited to kim jong-il's private parties and drink with him. he would ask me do you like me? i would tell him i loved him and kiss his cheek. they shared a passion for fine food. while many north koreans were starving, kim jong-il would send him around the world to buy ingredients for lavish dishes. he traveled to thailand for man

meanwhile south korean president lee myung bak convened an emergency meeting asking military leaders to stay on alert. the white house also released a statement saying "we remain committed to stability on the korean peninsula and to the freedom and security of our allies." kim's north korea was isolated and unpredictable and often seen more like a cult than a country. at times bizarre but also dangerous, impoverishing and enslaving his own people, while arming himself with nuclear weapons and threatening to annihilate his dictator. it was easy to make fun of his hairdo and cocktails, he was a fan of fast cars, and fine foods. diplomats describe kim as shrewd, calculating, well practiced at the use of frets and force to win aid and successfully fending's you have efforts to rein in his nuclear weapons program. madeleine albright on her visit to north korea, the first ever by an american official. when asked if kim could be trusted albright replied -- >> i just can assure you that these glasses that i have on are not rose colored. >> reporter: in 2009 when laura ling and euna lee were

government has had quite a rocky relationship with its neighbors to the north under president lee myung-bakt year in 2010 on the south korea's warship which claims the lives of 46 sailors and the shelling of the south korean island it really left relations at rock bottom. so for south korea to express its sympathies to, really, reach out to its northern neighbors, it really is seen as thawing relations. >> thank you. >>> a massive snowstorm slams the west and midwest. take a look. unleashing heavy snow and fierce winds. blizzard warnings stretching from new mexico to kansas. driving conditions so dangerous, several roads, interstate 40, in knew mexico are closed. >>> and rob marciano getting it just right in the extreme weather center. rob, good morning. >> good morning. not just interstate 40, almost all the state highways in northeast new mexico closed. western kansas, texas and oklahoma panhandle, it's still going on. look at number as far as the wind gusts we saw here. this video garden city, kansas, since noon yesterday they've been experiencing winds, is a stabed at 30 miles an hour.

president lee myung-bak had been hard-lined before he softened his stance. it clearly wasn't enough for north korea. there should be a little context here. this is the kind of language we do expect from north korea. it's the kind of rhetoric that we have seen and heard a lot of in the past. very fiery rhetoric, but obviously it is coming very quickly after this official mourning period is over. alina? >> so, and, paula, it's deb now. we're also hearing that the u.s. plans to send one of its top diplomats to talk there in the region. do you think that that might help soften things? do you think that can help build a bridge, or right now is north korea just digging in and saying, sorry. things are going to ge on as usual? >> reporter: well, certainly from what we've heard today, it sounds as though they're digging in their heels and will be saying business as usual. sunday will be interesting. they always give an editorial on the first of january, every single year. it's published in the newspaper, but it's effectively indirectly from kim jong-il, it will be f

meanwhile south korean president lee myung bak convened an emergency meeting asking military leaders to stay on alert. the white house also released a statement saying "we remain committed to stability on the korean peninsula and to the freedom and security of our allies." kim's north korea was isolated and unpredictable and often seen more like a cult than a country. at times bizarre but also dangerous, impoverishing and enslaving his own people, while arming himself with nuclear weapons and threatening to annihilate his dictator. it was easy to make fun of his hairdo and cocktails, he was a fan of fast cars, and fine foods. diplomats describe kim as shrewd, calculating, well practiced at the use of frets and force to win aid and successfully fending's you have efforts to rein in his nuclear weapons program. madeleine albright on her visit to north korea, the first ever by an american official. when asked if kim could be trusted albright replied -- >> i just can assure you that these glasses that i have on are not rose colored. >> reporter: in 2009 when laura ling and euna lee were

japanese] >> i understand that there was a conversation between prime minister noda and president lee myung-bak yesterday, and based on the discussion i had with the secretary clinton today, i intend to reject my counterparts in the republic of korea at -- and tried -- i intend to reach out to my counterparts in the republic of korea and china and discuss this issue. >> [speaking japanese] >> we share the view that we should coordinate closely with six-party partners. we are also an agreement that both sides want stability and calmness during this period. >> [speaking japanese] >> in addition, we also confirmed that we should maintain our close coordination among japan, the united states, and the republic of korea on the effort for neutralization of north korea, in particular to ensure concrete actions taken by north korea. >> [speaking japanese] due to the most recent developments, we are seeing an increasing level of interest in and attention to how the process of dealing with the abduction issue develop within japan i expressed my gratitude to the united states for raising the abduction issu