Japan denies visas for N. Korean religious leaders

The Japanese government has denied visas for a North Korean delegation wanting to join an international religious event next week, a South Korean religious group said Thursday.

Six North Korean religious leaders applied for visas to attend the eighth World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP) to be held between Saturday and Tuesday in Kyoto, according to the Korean Council of Religion and Peace (KCRP).

No reason was given for the visa denial, but the move comes as relations between the two countries have worsened over an array of issues such as the North's abduction of Japanese citizens decades ago and the recent test-firing of missiles by Pyongyang, which heightened tension in the region.

"The visa denial signifies the Japanese government's intention to use the pure religious event as a means to stage a political and ideological reprisal (against the North)," the KCRP said in a statement.

The WCRP was founded in 1970 to provide a platform for world religious leaders to discuss issues affecting world peace and regional stability. The New York-based non-governmental organization assembles once every five years.

Seoul, Aug. 24 (Yonhap News)