Press Conference by Spokesman for the Delegation of Japan Hiroshi Hashimoto
The Leaders' Working Dinner

Major Topics

1. Introduction of speaker and briefing status
2. Proposal to send a Special Envoy to Cambodia
3. Japan-Russia relationshi

1. Introduction of speaker and briefing status

   Spokesman for the Prime Minister Hiroshi Hashimoto: Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen. I am sorry for the delay tonight. I will debrief you on Prime Minister Hashimoto's discussions at the Leaders' Working Dinner. On the participation of Russia in the Denver Summit, Mr. Hashimoto stated that Japan formally welcomes the participation of Russia, headed by Mr. Yeltsin. Mr. Hashimoto explained to his colleagues that Mr. Clinton telephoned him prior to the U.S.-Russia Helsinki Meeting and asked his opinion on Russia's participation in the Denver Summit, and Mr. Hashimoto, without hesitation, promptly agreed to Russia's participation in the Summit, although there is an unsolved issue between Japan and Russia. Mr. Hashimoto explained to his colleagues that he and Mr. Yeltsin met over breakfast this morning and agreed that the territorial issue should be solved by the two countries, and went on to say that together with Mr. Yeltsin, he will do his best to solve this issue. At the same time, the Prime Minister asked his colleagues at the table to extend cooperation on this issue. Mr. Hashimoto congratulated Mr. Yeltsin on being together with the other leaders at the same table, in good health, and celebrated his activities. Mr. Yeltsin applauded Mr. Hashimoto's remarks. On Bosnia, Prime Minister Hashimoto said the Japanese Government, together with Canada and the United Kingdom, has been contributing and cooperating regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina, specifically realizing an electricity supply project across the two entities. We consider the upcoming local elections and the war criminal issues to be very important, and Japan will continue to extend humanitarian aid and aid for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Bosnia and Herzegovina together with the other countries. Japan does not necessarily have sufficient experience and know-how in that country; therefore, Japan asks special cooperation from the other countries. Some members of the G-8 specifically mentioned Japan's contributions to humanitarian assistance to and the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Bosnia. Some representative said that in the case of Japan, not only does Japan pledge a certain amount of money, but also really disburses the money. On Cambodia, the Prime Minister took initiatives to propose something. First of all, he expressed his deep anxiety about the situation in Cambodia. Incidentally, Japan contributed a lot to the restoration of peace in Cambodia and has been extending cooperation to Cambodia for reconstruction and redevelopment of its economy. Recently, the situation has become very fluid and dangerous. If we leave the situation untouched, it will become very critical. Prime Minister Hashimoto suggested that the Japanese Government is contemplating sending the Special Envoy of the Prime Minister to meet Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Mr. Hun Sen if the other eight countries agree and give Japan the mandate to do so. In this connection, the Prime Minister asked the cooperation of France. President Chirac replied that he shared the same opinion of the Prime Minister of Japan. The situation is imminent and he is very much concerned about the critical situation in Cambodia. Japan is enjoying the biggest influence on Cambodia. Therefore, Mr. Chirac said that he will support what Mr. Hashimoto has just proposed. Prince Ranariddh and Mr. Hun Sen can tell what they really think only to an envoy from Japan, because Cambodia has been expressing its faith in Japan. Mr. Clinton intervened and said that according to what he obtained from other sources, Japan is the best country to play an important role in this. Mr. Hashimoto said that he has one particular person in mind who can really talk to Prince Ranariddh and Mr. Hun Sen and King Norodom Sihanouk, and he said that if the summiteers agree, he will send his Special Envoy to Cambodia. Although he cannot guarantee the success of this mission, Japan will do its best in this regard. Mr. Clinton asked the Japanese and the French sides to further elaborate on the mission, the sending of the special envoy, and suggested the inclusion of this issue in one form or another in the document of the Denver Summit. That was the end of the discussion. In fact, now, at this moment, France and Japan are consulting with each other about what we should do and how to put this issue into a document. I would like to hasten to explain to you that if summiteers agree, Japan wants to send this Special Envoy, who happens to be the former Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia, Mr. Yukio Imagawa, who has really enjoyed close contact with Prince Ranariddh, Mr. Hun Sen and King Norodom Sihanouk, as well as other people of Cambodia. Mr. Imagawa is a real friend of the Cambodian government and the Cambodian people, and Japan is contemplating sending Mr. Imagawa next week. There is a possibility that Ms. Albright will go to Cambodia, but it has not been decided yet, but if Ms. Albright and Mr. Imagawa happen to be in Phnom Penh at the same time, Mr. Imagawa will explain to her what he will have accomplished at the meeting with Prince Ranariddh and Mr. Hun Sen. It means that Japan is not only cooperating with France, but with the United States, to conduct this special mission. This is what I can tell you about the outcome of the dinner. Thank you.

2. Proposal to send a Special Envoy to Cambodia

   Q: When will you know whether the G-7 has agreed to send an envoy? Will it be after you have worked with the French to come up with some sort of agreement and then present it to them? Is that how that works?

   A: We have not decided in what form to announce this proposal. We do not know whether we will issue a separate paper, we do not know whether this will be included in the final communique or not. After we elaborate on the wording of the documentation, we will present this to the Chair of the Denver Summit and the Chair will decide what to do with it. We have got to wait and see. Japan received a very favorable reaction from the other seven countries. Therefore, we can expect that we can explain to you in concrete terms the purpose of the mission.

3. Japan-Russia relationship

   Q: You talked about the fact that now Japan and Russia have a different relationship than they did before. You still have a border problem. Do you feel that the breakup of the Soviet Union has helped Japan move closer to Russia? In other words, when the Soviet Union was in power, did they feel that was something that was never going to be taken care of, but now that it is broken down into just Russia that you have to deal with, there is a great possibility of handling that?

   A: Basically, the territorial issues should be solved among the parties directly concerned. In this sense it is natural that Russia and Japan will directly engage on this issue. At the same time, Mr. Hashimoto repeatedly asked for cooperation from the other countries on this. Incidently, Mr. Hashimoto and Mr. Yeltsin had a very good talk this morning, and we hope to make progress on this territorial issue. At the same time, we are very happy to have Mr. Yeltsin at the Summit. As I told you, the Prime Minister welcomed the participation in the Summit. We would like to expand the relationship with Russia, both bilaterally and at international fora, such as this Summit. Therefore, what we would like to do is expand our relations in many fields and through the widening of our relationship we would like to make progress on the territorial issue as well.

   Q: Is there a point of with unilateral trade now going on with Russia?

   A: For example, in comparison with our trade with China, the portion of our trade with Russia is much less. But we would like to deepen not only the trade relationship, but also other type of economic relations, such as the increase of Japan's direct investments in Russia. Very recently, the First Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Nemtsov, visited Japan and he proposed concrete measures to deepen economic relations with Japan, which was highly appreciative. This subject was touched by Mr. Hashimoto and Mr. Yeltsin this morning too. By doing so, now we can hope that we can develop trade and economic relations with Russia. At the same time, I would like to stress that while we are deepening our economic and trade relationships, we would also like to deepen our political relationship, conducting high-level policy dialogue including security dialogue. At the same time, our eventual aim is to fully normalize the bilateral relationship between the two countries through solving the territorial issue and signing a peace treaty. Thank you very much for your cooperation.