Japan and three other countries have issued a joint statement urging North Korea to rectify its human rights situation.

Japan, the United States, South Korea and Albania issued the joint statement on Friday to mark this month's 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Japan and Albania are currently non-permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The United Nations has been hosting a variety of events to commemorate the occasion over the past week.

The four countries accuse Pyongyang of having one of the world's worst human rights records. They cite abductions of Japanese and South Korean nationals as examples of the North's human rights breaches.

They also point out that the North Korean people are unable to exercise their rights, including "freedoms of expression, thought, conscience, and religion, peaceful assembly, association and movement."

The statement says the North Korean government continues to ignore "the basic needs of its people."

The countries call on Pyongyang "to abide by its obligations under international law to take immediate steps to end all human rights violations and abuses."