Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R) talked about his meeting in Tokyo with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (L) in a phone call with US President Donald Trump, Kyodo News reported (Du Xiaoyi)
<p>Tokyo (AFP) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday discussed events in Iran and North Korea with US President Donald Trump in a lengthy phone call, the Kyodo news agency reported.</p><p>The phone conversation, which Abe told reporters took place at Trump’s request, came on the same day that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani wrapped up his two-day visit to Japan.</p><p>Rouhani’s trip came after deadly protests over fuel price hikes in Iran, where the economy has been hit by US sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear programme.</p><p>Japan is a key US ally that also maintains close diplomatic and economic ties with Iran, and Abe has tried to build bridges between the two rivals.</p><p>Abe did not refer to Iran when he met with reporters just before midnight Saturday, but a Japanese government source told Kyodo that Abe did talk to Trump about his discussions with Rouhani.</p><p>The Abe-Trump phone call lasted about 75 minutes, according to Kyodo.</p><p>Abe told reporters that he and the US leader talked about what Kyodo described as a "coordinated response" towards North Korea.</p><p>Pyongyang has shown frustration at the lack of sanctions relief after three summits with Trump.</p><p>Earlier this month it promised a "Christmas gift" if the US did not come up with concessions by the end of the year after it placed a moratorium on long-range missile tests.</p><p></p>

Disclaimer: Validity of the above story is for 7 Days from original date of publishing. Source: AFP.