KYODO NEWS - Jul 21, 2017 - 15:31 | All, World

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson on Friday lambasted North Korea's recent intercontinental ballistic missile test as a "reckless provocation," urging China to take a key role in grappling with the issue.

"Two weeks ago, we saw the test of an ICBM. Unquestionably, an ICBM landed in the Sea of Japan," the outspoken former London mayor told a press conference in Tokyo following a strategic dialogue with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

"We all need to increase the pressure on Pyongyang through diplomacy and sanctions and that must include China using its influence to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table," Johnson added.

Kishida said at the joint news conference with Johnson that they agreed Japan and Britain will take the lead in tackling challenges facing the global community such as Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs as well as China's assertiveness in the South and East China seas.

As for the future of bilateral investment and trade relations, Kishida said that Johnson, who was one of the leaders of the "Brexit" campaign in 2016, promised to take necessary measures to minimize the negative impact on Japanese companies from Britain's planned departure from the European Union.

Johnson, meanwhile, welcomed investment from Japan to Britain, saying commercial ties between the two countries can be strengthened.

According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, Johnson, who assumed his post last July, is scheduled to stay in Tokyo for three days through Saturday.

On Thursday, he visited Waseda University in Tokyo, which works closely with the University of Birmingham in Britain in the field of robotics.

When he visited Japan in 2015 as London mayor, Johnson garnered huge media coverage when he flattened a 10-year-old schoolboy who attempted to tackle him during a game of rugby.