Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe headed today for a four-day trip to Europe including Germany, France, Belgium and Italy. He will discuss security issues and make progress on trade as regional tensions soar over accelerating North Korean threats. Abe's trip comes a few days after US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited Tokyo for talks on North Korean nuclear and missile threats.<br/><br/>The top US diplomat also travelled to Seoul and Beijing after Tokyo. Before his departure at a Tokyo airport Abe said that he wants to exchange opinions openly with G7 leaders. He said, we hope to closely cooperate with the EU on issues the international community is facing such as the problems on North Korea and free trade.<br/><br/>Abe will hold talks with European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker and freshly re-elected European Union President Donald Tusk in Brussels as the EU aims to close a free trade deal with Tokyo this year. The Japanese premier will return to Tokyo on Wednesday after meeting with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, chair of this year's Group of Seven industrialised countries.