By Ko Hirano SEA ISLAND, Georgia, June 10 Kyodo - Leaders of the Group of Eight major nations closed their three-day summit Thursday expressing support for Japan's efforts to comprehensively resolve the issue of Japanese abducted by North Korea and the standoff over the North's nuclear programs.

The leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States also demonstrated unity in their support for Iraq's reconstruction. But France and the United States were unable to bridge their differences over ways to promote the political process in Iraq.

''We support the six-party talks as well as efforts by all concerned parties to achieve a comprehensive solution by diplomatic means to the DPRK nuclear issue and to other security and humanitarian issues, such as the abductions,'' the G-8 said in the chairman's summary released after the summit on Sea Island, Georgia.

The DPRK, or the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is the official name of North Korea. Six nations -- China, Japan, North and South Korea, Russia and the United States -- are seeking to convene a third round of talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions by the end of this month.

It was the second straight year that North Korea's abductions of Japanese was mentioned in a statement issued at the annual G-8 summit meeting.

Japan and North Korea have made progress on the abduction issue since last year's G-8 summit in Evian, France. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was able to take with him to Japan five children of repatriated abductees when he visited Pyongyang May 22 for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. Koizumi also obtained assurances from Kim for a reinvestigation of the whereabouts of 10 other Japanese.

However, tough tasks still lie ahead to completely resolve the abduction issue because it is unclear whether North Korea will be able to give convincing accounts of their whereabouts.

Koizumi reiterated Japan's North Korea policy at a news conference after the annual gathering, saying he wants to comprehensively resolve North Korea's nuclear and missile issues as well as the abduction issue before normalizing bilateral ties.

While urging North Korea to become a responsible member of the international community by abandoning nuclear programs, Koizumi said, ''We will never provide full-scale economic assistance before normalizing diplomatic ties.''

The G-8 extended firm support for Iraq's reconstruction following the U.N. Security Council's unanimous adoption Tuesday of a resolution endorsing the June 30 transfer of power in Iraq and authorizing a multinational force, in which Koizumi indicated Japan will take part.

''We stand together united in our support for the Iraqi people and the fully sovereign Iraqi interim government as they seek to rebuild their nation,'' the chairman's summary reads.

U.S. President George W. Bush told a news conference in wrapping up the three-day summit that the G-8 leaders were able to unite to help Iraqis create a stable and democratic nation, putting aside their differences over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

''We just completed a very successful summit,'' he said. ''The nations of the G-8 are united in our desire to help bring stability and democracy to Iraq.''

However, Bush and French President Jacques Chirac, who strongly opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq last year, remained apart on ways to promote Iraq's reconstruction. The French president expressed reluctance to accept an expanded role for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Iraq.

The G-8 also outlined a set of measures to help develop economic and social systems in the broader Middle East and North Africa plan, including the launch of a $100 million fund to rev up business activity in the region.

The G-8 leaders unequivocally said the group's support for reform in the region will go ''hand in hand'' with their support for ''a just, comprehensive and lasting settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict,'' without which many Arabs said peace and stability in the region will not be ensured.

On security, the G-8 leaders agreed to reinforce such regimes as the Proliferation Security Initiative and the International Atomic Energy Agency to stop weapons of mass destruction from proliferating to countries such as North Korea and Iran as part of efforts to counter terrorism.

The PSI, which includes all G-8 members, was launched by Bush last year to help intercept nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, their components and delivery systems in transit.

The G-8 also reaffirmed their commitment to expand global capability for peace support operations, set up a project to combat HIV through development of a vaccine, fight corruption and boost transparency in developing countries as part of efforts to promote development, especially in Africa.

The G-8 leaders also vowed to compile by July 31 a framework for talks on farm trade to salvage stalled negotiations on global trade liberalization under the World Trade Organization and welcomed recent progress toward Russia's accession to the WTO. ==Kyodo Full text of G-8 chairman's summary SEA ISLAND, Georgia, June 10 Kyodo - The following is the full text of the chairman's summary issued by U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday at the conclusion of the three-day Group of Eight summit on Sea Island, Georgia.

We met at Sea Island for our annual summit to advance freedom by strengthening international cooperation to make the world both safer and better.

Leaders from Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, and Turkey joined us at Sea Island.

We welcomed the unanimous approval of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1546 on Iraq. We stand together united in our support for the Iraqi people and the fully sovereign Iraqi interim government as they seek to rebuild their nation.

In our discussion of the broader Middle East and North Africa, we welcomed statements from the region on the need for reform. As the leaders of the major industrialized democracies in the world, we recognize our special responsibility to support freedom and reform, and therefore we committed to:

-- forge a historic Partnership for Progress and a Common Future with the governments and peoples of the broader Middle East and North Africa.

-- establish together with our partners a Forum for the Future, which will root our efforts in an enduring dialogue in support of the region's reform efforts. The first meeting of the forum will be held later this year.

-- adopt a G-8 Plan of Support for Reform, which commits us to intensify and, in partnership with the region, expand our already strong individual and collective engagements, and launch new initiatives to support: democracy, literacy, entrepreneurship/vocational training, microfinance, and small business financing, among other things.

Our support for reform in the region will go hand in hand with our support for a just, comprehensive, and lasting settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict. We called upon the quartet to meet in the region before the end of the month to restore momentum on the road map.

At Evian, we recognized the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems, together with international terrorism, as the pre-eminent threat to international peace and security. Determined to prevent, contain, and roll back proliferation, we adopted a G-8 Action Plan on Nonproliferation to reinforce the global nonproliferation regime. This action plan enhances and expands ongoing efforts, such as the Proliferation Security Initiative, which now includes all G-8 members, and the G-8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. The Action Plan addresses transfers of enrichment and reprocessing equipment and technologies, and takes steps to strengthen the International Atomic Energy Agency and to counter bioterrorism. The Action Plan calls on all states to implement the recently passed U.N. Security Council Resolution 1540, and addresses the proliferation challenges in North Korea, Iran and Libya.

International terrorism poses a direct challenge to global security and prosperity. We agreed to enhance our counterterrorism efforts by launching the Secure and Facilitated International Travel Initiative (SAFTI) to improve the security and efficiency of air, land and sea travel. We agreed to new measures to destroy excess stockpiles of Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS) and to prevent their proliferation.

We welcomed the increasing strength of the global economy. We agreed it was important to take advantage of the strong global economic environment to implement further reforms to accelerate growth in our countries. We noted the recent pledge by oil producers to increase production. We recognized the need for balanced energy policies, which increase energy supplies and encourage more efficient energy use and conservation, including through new technologies.

We recognized that we face a moment of strategic economic opportunity: by combining the upturn in global growth with a worldwide reduction of barriers to trade, we can deepen, broaden and extend this economic expansion. Therefore, we directed our ministers, and called on all WTO members, to finalize the frameworks by July to put the WTO negotiations back on track so that we can expeditiously complete the Doha Development Agenda. We welcomed recent progress toward Russia's accession to the WTO. We also recognized the need to fight counterfeiting and piracy of intellectual property.

The challenges faced by Africa, including armed conflict, HIV/AIDS, famine and poverty, represent a compelling call for international cooperation to support the continent's efforts to achieve lasting progress. We met with the presidents of Algeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda, and we committed to:

-- launch a G-8 Action Plan on Expanding Global Capability for Peace Support Operations;

-- adopt a G-8 Action Plan on Applying the Power of Entrepreneurship to the Eradication of Poverty;

-- endorse and establish a Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise to accelerate HIV vaccine development. The United States will host later this year a meeting of all interested stakeholders in the enterprise;

-- take all necessary steps to eradicate polio by 2005 and close the funding gap by our next summit. We have already closed the funding gap for 2004;

-- launch a new Initiative on Ending the Cycle of Famine in the Horn of Africa, Raising Agricultural Productivity, and Promoting Rural Development in Food Insecure Countries; and

-- reaffirm our commitment to fully implementing and financing the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. We issued a separate statement on HIPC.

Sustainable development requires international cooperation and action on improving our environment. We endorsed the Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle (3R's) Initiative.

We supported progress in the multilateral effort against corruption and welcomed the completion of Comprehensive Anti-Corruption Compacts with Georgia, Nicaragua, Nigeria and Peru. We noted the role information technology can play in promoting transparency.

We also discussed regional challenges, including:

-- Afghanistan: We agreed on the need for international support for upcoming Afghan elections and counternarcotics efforts.

-- Gaza Withdrawal/Middle East Peace: We issued a separate statement on Gaza withdrawal and the road ahead to Middle East peace.

-- Haiti: We discussed how to meet Haiti's urgent needs for budget support, electricity and police, and called on all donors to do their utmost to provide support at the July donors' conference and to effect a sustainable future for this country.

-- North Korea: We addressed the DPRK nuclear issue in our G-8 Action Plan on Nonproliferation. We support the six-party talks as well as efforts by all concerned parties to achieve a comprehensive solution by diplomatic means to the DPRK nuclear issue and to other security and humanitarian issues, such as the abductions.

-- Sudan: We issued a separate statement on Sudan.

We welcomed the offer of the prime minister of the United Kingdom to host our next Summit in 2005. ==Kyodo Highlights of G-8 chairman's summary SEA ISLAND, Georgia, June 10 Kyodo - The following are the highlights of the chairman's summary issued by U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday at the conclusion of the three-day Group of Eight summit on Sea Island, Georgia.

The G-8 leaders:

-- pledged support for reforms in the broader Middle East and North Africa region.

-- vowed to reinforce the global nonproliferation regime.

-- agreed to enhance counterterrorism efforts by improving security and efficiency of air, land, and sea travel.

-- welcomed the increasing strength of the global economy.

-- called on WTO members to finalize frameworks by July to complete trade liberalization talks under the current Doha Round.

-- note the recent pledge by oil producers to increase production.

-- recognize the need for balanced energy policies.

-- committed to establish a global consortium to accelerate HIV vaccine development.

-- vowed to take all necessary steps to eradicate polio by 2005.

-- agreed to work to end famine in Africa.

-- reaffirmed commitment to finance an initiative to help heavily indebted poor countries.

-- supported progress in multilateral efforts against corruption.

-- agreed on the need for international support for Afghan elections.

-- discussed how to meet Haiti's needs and called on donors to provide support.

-- supported six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions and efforts for a comprehensive solution to the North's nuclear, security and humanitarian issues, such as the abductions. ==Kyodo