TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The government is considering replacing the secretariat head of its office in charge of issues related to North Korea's past abductions of Japanese nationals, in a rare short-term shakeup aimed at strengthening ties with the abductees' families, government sources said Thursday.

If the move transpires, Shigenobu Fukumoto, 61, would leave the key post overseeing administrative work for the government headquarters just two years after assuming it. His predecessor Shoichiro Ishikawa spent about nine years at the helm.

The government is looking for a successor from candidates hailing from the National Police Agency, similar to Fukumoto. But it has yet to decide on the exact timing of the replacement, the sources said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has placed a priority on resolving the long-standing abduction issue, but no tangible progress has been seen since he took office last October.

The Japanese government officially lists 17 abductees, five of whom were repatriated in 2002 after a visit to Pyongyang by then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

Ishiba's idea of setting up liaison offices in Tokyo and Pyongyang to help resolve the abduction issue prompted opposition from family members of the abductees.

The envisaged replacement of Fukumoto is seen as part of government efforts to boost trust with them, according to the sources.

The headquarters for the abduction issue is tasked with crafting strategies to secure the return of all Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s and support the family members. The head of the secretariat of the office serves as a liaison with the families.

Ishiba has said U.S. President Donald Trump promised to broach the abduction issue should talks between Washington and Pyongyang resume. Trump held talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his first term as president.

Fukumoto joined the National Policy Agency in 1986 and previously served as a councillor in charge of intelligence and research in the Cabinet Secretariat.