Press Conference by the Press Secretary 10 January 1997

The hostage situation in the Republic of Peru
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hiroshi Hashimoto: I would like to extend a warm welcome to you to this regular Ministry of Foreign Affairs' press briefing. Happy new year. Since we met last year, unfortunately, I have not had a chance to rest at all, I have been deeply involved in the issue of the attack on the Japanese Ambassador's residence in the Republic of Peru. There has been no particular development of the situation since seven hostages had been released on 1 January. A large number of hostages are being held inside the Ambassador's residence. The situation remains difficult and unpredictable. The Government of Japan will continue to make every effort to work for an early peaceful resolution of this incident and the release of all hostages. In so doing, it will continue to place its fullest confidence in the Government of Peru, without bending to terrorism and with respect for the lives of all of the hostages as its highest priority. Having said so, I would be delighted to answer any questions which you may have.
Japan-ASEAN dialogue
Q: Can I raise a question on Prime Minister Hashimoto's visit to ASEAN? Can you tell me if you heard the suggestion of foreign aid and how ASEAN dialogue has been received so far by the countries he's visiting. Specifically, has there been any reference to possible objections by China regarding such a dialogue?

A: First of all, as you correctly pointed out, Prime Minister Hashimoto has been proposing this with the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries which he has visited. After the end of his tour, he is scheduled to give a policy speech in Singapore. Probably, he will refer to the proposal of this. Up until now, Prime Minister Hashimoto's proposal has been well received by the ASEAN leaders. So, I expect that this proposal will be formally taken. At the same time, any other third country is not expected to be opposed to this regular dialogue between Japan and ASEAN.

Q: Have any of the countries that he's put the proposal to expressed nervousness about China's possible reaction? Have any of the other countries that Prime Minister Hashimoto spoken to, have they expressed nervousness about the possible reaction of China? I understand that no third country has expressed a position, but has any other country that he has discussed the proposal with expressed nervousness as I have said?

A: As far as I have read from the cable from the delegation, I have not detected any sort of information that you have just asked about.

Q: Just one final question. Would this dialogue, if it takes place, be similar to the Europe-ASEAN dialogue or not?

A: Already there is a regular dialogue between Japan and ASEAN on the ministerial level. In the past, occasionally, then-Prime Minister of Japan was invited to hold talks with all the ASEAN countries. Based on the fact that Japan has been developing close ties with the ASEAN countries, we now propose that now is the time to have a regular dialogue on the top level. At the same time, I would like to draw your attention that -- formally or informally -- the ASEAN leaders meet regularly. Based on that, it is appropriate for us also to hold a sort of regular dialogue with the ASEAN countries.

Q: This dialogue, if it takes place -- the new dialogue, would it encompass security issues, political issues, economic issues?

A: The detail has not been worked out yet, but if we recall the dialogue between Japan and ASEAN on the ministerial level, I think both economic and political matters may be discussed at the top level as well. But, I do not believe that the detail of the mechanism of the dialogue has been worked out.
Issues regarding the oil spill off Fukui Prefecture
Q: About the oil spill, there is a report that the Ambassador to Russia yesterday visited the Foreign Ministry in Russia and they had a talk about compensation or whatever. Can you confirm that -- if there has been any talk between the two countries?

A: Already the Foreign Ministry has explained to the Government of the Russian Federation through the ordinary channel on this incident and asked the Government of Russia to make good dialogue with the owner of the ship concerned if any Japanese organization requires the owner of the ship to do specific things. The Russian side, so far, was grateful that the Japanese side helped the rescue of the crew of the Russian ship and, at the same time, the Russian side appreciated the explanation of this incident. This is one fact. The other fact is that the Russian side has informed us that some companies in the Far East are now preparing to send materials to the spot of the incident and asked whether the Japanese side is ready to accept it and the Japanese side replied that we are happy to receive it at the cost of the Russian side. However, do you know any specific information on the Japanese Ambassador, did you say? Have you some information? Can you come and explain?

Director of the International Press Division Hidehiko Hamada: I would like to supplement what Spokesman Hashimoto has just said. I believe that when our Ambassador to Russia visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation yesterday, the Ambassador asked, first of all, to take necessary steps to investigate the causes of this incident and also, to take further measures to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future. Secondly, he asked the Russian side to take appropriate measures to respond to this incident in a proper and timely manner. In response to these points raised by our Ambassador, the Russian side expressed their apologies for the occurrence of this incident. Also, they promised to transmit our requests to the appropriate authorities of the Government of Russia so that the Russian side will be able to take appropriate measures. That was the communication between the two sides.

Q: Mr. Hashimoto said that some companies in the Far East are preparing to ship some materials, is that a result of this consultation?

A: As far as this point is concerned, already on 6 January the offer was done.

A: Yes, it should have been taken before the Ambassador's talk with the officials of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Q: There is a report that a British company says that the ship has US$5 million in insurance. Do you know anything about this?

A: For the moment, to be very frank, we do not know the exact figure of the insured amount. That should be examined and confirmed at a later stage.

Q: Has there been any change in the policy of the Japanese Government to compensate the victims of the oil spill?

A: It would be rather premature and not appropriate to respond to that question at this juncture. As a matter of fact, we already know that it could be covered by the insurance attached by the owner of the ship. But as we do not know yet the total amount of the damage caused by the incident, it is rather difficult and premature to make out a clear picture. All we can say at this juncture is that it could be covered basically by insurance. And if it exceeds the maximum amount covered by insurance, the difference could be covered by the international fund.

Q: International funds such as?

A: Although I am not in a position to give you detailed information on this, we know that there is an international scheme to cover the huge damage caused by such an incident as this; that has already been pre-set. The system is that we have to perhaps seek compensation by insurance first, but if the total amount will not be covered by insurance, then we can further seek compensation by the fund established by an international agreement. That is our understanding. But, as we have said earlier, it is anyway rather premature because we do not know how much would be the total cost incurred for the damage at this juncture.

Q: I understand that it is very early and it is not clear how much damage has been caused or what it would cost to clean up the spill. But, do you have any idea? Are there any estimates?

A: For the moment, we do not have any figure we can use to formally answer that question.
Issues regarding the Tupac Amaru's political manifesto
Q: This is a brief question on Peru. I am sorry, but I haven't been really covering this issue, but, among the demands of the rebels, the Tupac Amaru, have they actually demanded at any stage that their political manifesto be published either in Japan or in Peru?

A: Several times, the manifesto was released up until now. The most comprehensive one was probably the one stated by former Minister of Labor Sandro Fuentus on 22 December, last year, when 225 hostages were released. That statement was written in Spanish, I do not know if there was an English version.

Q: Was it published in the Japanese press?

A: At that time, we translated it into Japanese and probably some Japanese newspaper must have carried an article on this. But, if you are interested in it, we can give you a provisional Japanese translation. At the same time, to be fair enough, I think you should also read the statement by President Alberto Fujimori of the Republic of Peru on this question. He gave a so-called message to the Peruvian people on this subject and, in this message, he specifically gave a proposal on how to solve this issue. This was also said in Spanish, but we have a provisional Japanese translation. If you are interested in that, you can also have a copy of that too. We think that statement is important because President Fujimori's policy has not changed since that time.

Q: The Prime Minister's policy speech in Singapore, what date is that?

A: On 14 January. To be more precise, Prime Minister Hashimoto is going to make a policy speech at the Shangri-la Hotel on 14 January and he will hold a press conference on 13 January, both in Singapore.
Foreign Minister Ikeda's upcoming trip to the Republic of Korea
Q: Could you tell us about Foreign Minister Ikeda's trip to South Korea?

A: We announced that Minister for Foreign Affairs Yukihiko Ikeda is visiting the Republic of Korea on 15 January. It is a one day trip. He will go to the Republic of Korea and come back on the same day.

Q: With whom is he going to meet? It is a very short trip.

A: It is a very short trip. On 25-26 January, President Kim Young Sam of the Republic of Korea will visit Beppu, Japan and will hold summit talks with Prime Minister Hashimoto. Bearing this in mind, Minister for Foreign Affairs Yukihiko Ikeda will meet his counterpart discussing various subjects. But, at the same time, Foreign Minister Ikeda will have a chance to pay a courtesy call to President Kim Young Sam.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' position on the incident in Peru
Q: Regarding the Peru situation, the developments regarding the past few days, has that changed at all the position of the Foreign Ministry on how it is approaching the situation?

A: I do not believe so. We fully support what President Fujimori has been doing and is going to do. There has been very close contact between the two Governments. But, it is regrettable that this incident has not been resolved so far. At the same time, we have got to admit that the entry of several journalists into the compound of the Ambassador's residence has really impeded the efforts of the Government of Peru in this. We hope that this will not be repeated in the future. We understand that President Fujimori is making his utmost efforts to solve this incident. He is determined to achieve a peaceful resolution of this incident and the release of all the hostages. Without being interrupted by any other party, we just hope that President Fujimori can do his work so that this incident will reach a happy ending.

Q: Why has the entry of the journalists impeded the process? Maybe I am missing the point. What specifically has their entry done which has slowed down the rescue of the hostages?

A: I will just quickly remind you that up until the end of last December, gradually hostages have been released. On 28 December, last year, there was the first informal direct contact between the Minister of Education Domingo Palermo of the Republic of Peru and the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA). But, because of the entry of the journalists into the compound of the Ambassador's residence, this process has stopped. President Fujimori, the other day, stated in his interview, because of this incident, for the past several days the Peruvian side cannot contact the MRTA through wireless telephone.

Q: Perhaps the rebels prefer to talk to the press rather than talk to the Government.

A: I unfortunately cannot make a comment on such a specific thing, but, we have got to admit that those incidents have really impeded the efforts of the Government of Peru. The most important thing is that this incident will be solved peacefully and quickly, so we hope that this will not happen in the future.
Possible measures to be taken by the Government of Japan regarding the oil spill
Q: One last question, to return to the oil spill question. In light of this spill, has the Government been looking into any special patrolling measures or any way of ensuring the quality or safety of these vessels that are on these waters?

A: Are you talking about the measures taken by the Japanese Government? At the moment, we do not have any concrete information that we can pass on to you. But, we have heard that the Emergency Response Headquarters has been calling for the participation of all the relevant ministries and agencies. So, it is expected that appropriate measures to prevent the further spill of oil and damage caused by the oil will be taken in due course. While we cannot answer the specific question whether certain specific measures will be taken vis-‡-vis ships or vessels, we expect that necessary actions will be quickly taken. It is our primary task to prevent the further spread of the damage caused by this incident. I also would like to supplement what I have previously said in answering your questions. I gave the answer, in talking about schemes of compensation, on the basis of the existing framework, namely insurance and an international arrangement. We can expect that if, for example, those who are damaged by the oil pollution would prefer to get compensation from insurance, there is insurance for this particular ship. But at the same time, I do not want to preclude other possibilities. As I have stated earlier, it is rather premature to explore what other options would be when the total damage is still not clear at all. We also have to bear in mind that this is a very rare case which caused huge damage to people living on the coastline of Japan, and a lot of trouble to the fishermen working in the polluted area and so on. But, depending on what would be ascertained as the exact damage caused by this incident, there may be other options, including, for example, compensation on a country to country basis, or government to government basis. I would like to add this so as not to preclude other possibilities, other channels, or other options to make proper compensation to the damage caused by the incident. These are what I would like to supplement to my previous remarks. Thank you very much.

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