Leaders pose ahead of a work meeting as part of the G7 summit, in Evian, eastern France, Tuesday. AFP-Yonhap
WASHINGTON — The leaders from the Group of Seven (G7) countries reiterated their commitment to the "complete denuclearization" of North Korea in a joint statement released Wednesday, as they held a summit in France this week.
The leaders of the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Italy issued the statement on geopolitical issues concerning the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Ukraine, following their meeting in Evian-les-Bains from Monday to Wednesday.
"We express deep concern about North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and reaffirm our commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea in accordance with U.N. Security Council resolutions," they said in the statement.
They also urged Pyongyang to "immediately" resolve the issue of abductees, who are thought to have been kidnapped by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, and reiterated the need to jointly address North Korea's cryptocurrency thefts and cybercrimes.
