British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his visiting Japanese counterpart said on Tuesday that the two countries would cooperate more closely to strengthen counter- proliferation.

"Proliferation of WMD, their means of delivery and related materials represent a major challenge to international peace and security," the two men said in a joint statement issued after talks at Downing Street 10.

Britain and Japan "reaffirm the importance of strengthening and maintaining the international disarmament and non proliferation regime based on the NPT, and in this regard, we intend to further cooperate in the NPT review process and PSI." they said.

"We express our grave concern over the recent developments on the Korean Peninsula including the missile launch and the proclaimed nuclear test and urge North Korea to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 1718, especially to abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs." said the statement.

According to the statement, the two countries will continue to work together to achieve early reform of the United Nations Security Council, and Britain will continue to support Japan's bid for Permanent Membership of the UN Security Council.

At the joint news conference after meeting, Blair said, "the membership of the UN Security Council of Japan is an important change and reform. I believe the moment is right for this to happen."

During the meeting, the two leaders also agreed to continue work together closely on Iraq, Afghanistan, anti-terrorism, and climate change.

Abe arrived in London on Tuesday kicking off his first visit to Europe since taking office in September last year. During his five- day trip, Abe will also meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin, Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt in Brussels, and French President Jacques Chirac in Paris.

According to Kyodo News, Abe is also scheduled to meet the heads of the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and will give a speech at the North Atlantic Council, NATO's top decision-making body.

Source: Xinhua