Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi said Friday his government will carefully study a joint statement issued by the ruling party of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and a group of Japanese lawmakers calling for resuming talks on normalizing ties between the two countries.

"We will thoroughly analyze (the joint statement), and study specific measures we should take," Obuchi told reporters.

Obuchi was commenting on a joint statement issued earlier in the day by the Workers' Party of Korea and the Japanese delegation. The two sides said in the document that they will urge their respective governments to resume normalize talks "at an early date."

The Japanese nonpartisan mission comprising sixteen lawmakers from Japan's major political parties returned to Tokyo Friday from a three-day visit to the DPRK.

Former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who headed the delegation, told a news conference he thinks the mission has fulfilled its purpose.

"Our goal was to prepare a climate for the smooth resumption of talks on establishing diplomatic ties," Murayama said, "I think we achieved that purpose."

Describing the mission's visit to Pyongyang as fruitful, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Mikio Aoki said earlier in the day that Tokyo believes it is basically favorable to establish a structure for full-fledged dialogue between Japanese and DPRK authorities.

Talks aimed at establishing diplomatic ties between Japan and the DPRK began in January 1991, but collapsed after eight rounds in November 1992.

The two countries agreed in August 1998 to resume the talks, but Tokyo froze the initiative after Pyongyang later that month launched a multistage rocket, part of which flew over Japan.

The DPRK says the rocket was for sending a satellite into orbit,

while Japan insists that it was for testing a medium-range ballistic missile. (Xinhua)

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