Press Conference by Press Secretary 18 July 1995

Planned resumption of nuclear testing by the French Republic and Japan's policy toward nuclear testing
Acting Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ken Shimanouchi: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I do not have any announcement today, so we can proceed immediately to the questions and answers. I will be delighted to respond to any questions that you might have.

Q: I have a lot of questions about what Japan is going to do, or not going to do, about the French nuclear test which is starting in September. A lot of Asia-Pacific countries are protesting or having sit-ins, or recalling Ambassadors, etc. I do understand that Prime Minister Murayama has protested to President Jacques Chirac, and Foreign Minister Kono has said the same thing to his counterpart; but, in addition to that, do you have any plan to symbolize the Japanese dissatisfaction with the resumption of French nuclear tests?

A: Let me go back to May. As you may recall, in the decision accompanying the decision to extend indefinitely the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) by consensus at the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of the Parties to the NPT, it was stated that the nuclear weapon States should exercise the utmost restraint with regard to nuclear testing. It is our position that it is incumbent on nuclear weapon States to measure up to the trust placed in them by non-nuclear weapon States. Japan, therefore, is opposed to all nuclear testing. We believe that countries that join the moratorium should continue to refrain from testing, and that countries conducting nuclear tests should discontinue them. We conveyed this position, after France announced its decision to resume nuclear testing, to the French side. Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama very clearly conveyed the Japanese position to President Jacques Chirac of the French Republic in their meeting in Paris last month. Also, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Yohei Kono stated Japan's position to his counterpart. It is Japan's position to call on France to reconsider the decision to resume nuclear testing, and we will continue to do so in a persistent manner.

Q: Probably the first occasion to come for Japan to conduct this effort would be the ASEAN Regional Forum, scheduled for1 August in Brunei. Could you tell us any specific agenda, or what kind of action Japan wants to take, at the conference?

A: In the Ministerial Meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) scheduled to take place in Brunei Darussalam on 1 August, the participants will be discussing security issues in the Asia-Pacific region. The Government of Japan is still considering internally what position we will be taking to this Meeting. However, I can say that there is great interest with regard to this question of nuclear testing among ARF members, and we anticipate that this issue will be taken up in the ARF Meeting. Last week, Foreign Minister Kono had a meeting with his counterpart, Secretary for Foreign Affairs Siazon of the Republic of the Philippines, and in that meeting, Foreign Minister Kono said that he would like to hear the views of ministers from the region on this issue at the time of the ARF Meeting.

Q: Is there any chance that the Government of Japan will take the initiative in some way denouncing the resumption of French tests?

A: I think the position of the Government of Japan has been made clear bilaterally to the French Government. I think the Japanese position is well known to the international community.

Q: President Chirac repeatedly rejected cancellation of the resumption of the nuclear tests. If he persists, and if the first of the series of nuclear tests does take place, will Japan possibly take some retaliatory action, or punitive action, against France -- for example, the Government's stopping procuring French products?

A: As I said already, the Japanese position is to make persistent efforts to have France reconsider its position. We are hopeful that France will reconsider its decision to conduct nuclear tests, and not go ahead with them.

Q: Can I approach this from another angle? As far as your remark that Japan is "opposed to all nuclear testing" is concerned -- you have a Security Treaty with the United States, and it is generally understood that it includes the U.S. nuclear umbrella. France's justification is that, in order to have nuclear weapons, they must continue to test whether they work or not. As far as the United States is concerned, it's fine. Everybody knows they do computer testing. So, what exactly is your objection to French testing. Is it to testing or to possession of nuclear weapons?

A: We are opposed to nuclear testing -- nuclear explosions. There is a moratorium agreed upon among nuclear weapon States, and we are hopeful that this moratorium is maintained, and that the People's Republic of China join this moratorium.

Q: But these are unilateral moratoria. There was no agreement to have a moratorium, anywhere. In fact, even in the NPT Review and Extension Conference -- the document you referred to that nuclear weapon States must show restraint is a side document. It is not part of the extension agreement. It doesn't bind anybody. Don't you think that at that stage you could have played a more purposeful role in binding them to stop nuclear tests?

A: We believe that the nuclear weapon States have a moral obligation to measure up, to respond, to the trust placed in them by the non-nuclear weapon States, and for the stability of the non-proliferation regime, we believe that it is very important that the moratorium is observed.

Q: What is the position of Foreign Minister Kono towards the proposal of Mr. Takemura for a resolution of the National Diet about this French testing?

A: It is our understanding that Chairman of New Party Sakigake Masayoshi Takemura expressed his views in his capacity as head of his political party, and therefore, the Government does not have any comments on his statements. The position of the Government is as I stated to you at the beginning of this press conference.

Q: What about the consultation with the Australians? Do you plan to have any joint action with the Australians on this subject?

A: Starting tomorrow, Director-General for Arms Control and Scientific Affairs Akira Hayashi of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be visiting Canberra to hold consultations with his Australian counterpart on arms control and non- proliferation issues. This conference is the sixth of its kind; the first was held in 1986. The purpose of these talks is for Japan and Australia, two like-minded Governments on arms control issues, to discuss arms control and disarmament issues in general. Of course, the French decision to resume nuclear testing is an issue which is very much on the minds of both Governments, so we anticipate that we will discuss the French decision, together with China's nuclear tests. However, we do not contemplate discussing any joint action with respect to these issues.

Q: Since May, when the Chinese carried out their last nuclear test, have their been any requests received from the Chinese for grants-in-aid from Japan?

A: I am not aware of any specific projects. The position that we announced shortly after the nuclear test by China in May was that we would take the test into consideration as we discuss this year's grants-in-aid program with China. But I am not aware of the specifics of the discussion taking place between the two Governments with respect to grants-in-aid. On the question of nuclear disarmament, there was one announcement made by Foreign Minister Kono this morning which may be of interest to you. As you may recall, in October last year, when China conducted its nuclear test, we proposed to China that the our two countries hold bilateral consultations on arms control and non-proliferation issues, including a Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), and after the Chinese nuclear test in May this year, we reiterated this proposal. The two Governments have agreed to hold consultations on disarmament and non-proliferation issues on 25 July in Beijing. Director-General Hayashi will be attending this meeting.
Possible impact of recent developments in Myanmar on Japan's Official Development Assistance (ODA) to that country
Q: Exactly a week ago the Spokesman made certain remarks on welcoming Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi's release from house arrest. Since then, there have been some developments in Myanmar, including her own statement and reactions from other parts of the world. Could you now outline for us the results of any internal deliberations you might have had about your future plans with Myanmar, particularly with regard to the resumption of ODA?

A: Our position on Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the Union of Myanmar has already been stated by our Spokesman last week. We believe that the release from house arrest of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi is an important development toward democratization and an improved human rights situation in Myanmar, and based on this evaluation, we will be considering this question of ODA for Myanmar, taking a very close look at overall trends in Myanmar, particularly trends in democratization and human rights. So, at this stage, we have not reached any decision on full resumption of ODA for Myanmar.

Q: It seems to me that there is a certain similarity between Myanmar and what happened in Haiti -- that is to say the 1990 elections in Myanmar were declared null and void by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). In Haiti, of course, a similar thing happened, and under the United Nations umbrella, forces went in, Japan contributed, and everyone contributed to restoring President Aristide. I see a similarity here, but I see an absence in your statements from last week and today -- that your ODA is not conditional on restoring, or bringing back, the results of those 1990 elections. How do you account for this inconsistency?

A: I just said that we will be following very closely developments in Myanmar, and when we say this, we have in mind the democratization process and improvements in human rights. We will be taking a very close look at that.

Q: Can you put a benchmark as to what you mean by democratization? Would it mean a release of the additional 800 detainees, or would you agree with the SLORC that the way they are framing the Constitution --

A: At this stage, we do not have any specific benchmarks of the nature that you have just mentioned.

Q: Could you confirm or deny a newspaper report that Foreign Minister Kono is considering a visit to Myanmar in August?

A: I have heard of no such plans.
Situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina
Q: About Bosnia -- the United Nations peace-keeping forces are in a very tight spot, and Mr. Akashi has, apparently, been removed from his former duty. Could you comment on the Japanese Government's observation of the current developments there?

A: We are extremely concerned about the deterioration of the situation in Bosnia. Last week, we issued a statement by the Foreign Ministry Spokesman regarding the current situation in Bosnia. We support the United Nations resolution which calls on the Bosnian Serbs to withdraw from Srebrenica. In that statement, we also stated that a lasting solution to the problem cannot be achieved through the use of force, that only peaceful dialogue can bring peace to the region. We also stated that we supported the efforts of the United Nations led by Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the Former Yugoslavia Yasushi Akashi, by the Co-Chairmen of the Conference on the Former Yugoslavia, and also the efforts of the Contact Group. That is our basic stance on the situation in Bosnia.
Shipment of Japanese rice aid to North Korea
Q: Could you update us on the shipment of rice to North Korea? Have any of the ships left Japan?

A: I will have to check on that. It was scheduled to leave in the latter part of this week, so it may not have left yet, and also it was contingent on weather conditions.

Back to Index