Press Conference 27 October 2000

1. Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs Yohei Kono on the continuation of the clashes between the Israelis and the Palestinians
2. Visit to Japan by President Mohammad Khatami of the Islamic Republic of Iran
3. Visit to Japan by President Kuniwo Nakamura of the Republic of Palau and Mrs. Nakamura
4. Attendance of State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Katsuhito Asano at the 12^thPost Forum Dialogue of the South Pacific Forum
5. Joint letter to President Bill Clinton of the United States from the Japanese, European Commission (EC) and Canadian Ambassadors to the United States
6. Election of Mr. Rudolphus Franciscus Marie Lubbers as the next United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
7. Questions relating to the visit of President Khatami to Japan
8. Other issues

1. Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs Yohei Kono on the continuation of the clashes between the Israelis and the Palestinians

   Deputy Press Secretary Chikahito Harada: Good afternoon. I have five announcements to start with, firstly on the continuation of the clashes between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

   Japan deeply deplores the fact that the clashes between the Israelis and the Palestinians have been still continuing despite the agreement reached at the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit Meeting on 17 October. Japan once again urges both parties to immediately halt the violence and exert maximum self-restraint in order to end the vicious cycle of violence. In particular, Japan strongly requests the State of Israel to refrain from the excessive use of force. Japan calls for immediate implementation of the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement. Japan has repeatedly stressed that a negotiated peace is the only realistic option and makes it clear that it is opposed to any policy that would close the pathway toward peace in the Middle East.

   Related Information (Crisis in the Middle East Peace Process)
   
2. Visit to Japan by President Mohammad Khatami of the Islamic Republic of Iran

   Mr. Harada: I would like to give you some information on the schedule for his visit to Japan by President Mohammad Khatami of the Islamic Republic of Iran from 31 October to 3 November. In the morning of 1 November, after the welcome ceremony, President Khatami will meet Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori. Then there will be a luncheon in honor of President Khatami hosted by six economic organizations. In the afternoon he will meet again with Prime Minister Mori, followed by a dinner hosted by Prime Minister Mori. In the morning of 2 November, he will give a lecture at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and will be awarded an honorary doctorate. Then President Khatami will make a state call on His Majesty the Emperor. The Emperor will host a Court Luncheon in honor of the President. In the afternoon there will be a reception in honor of President Khatami hosted by the Japan-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Association.

   In addition, we are consulting with the Diet on the arrangement of President Khatami's speech at the Diet. As you may notice, President Khatami will not only meet political and economic leaders, but also have the occasion to appeal a new image of Iran directly to Japanese people through dialogue with Japanese students and his speech at the Diet. We are now working on the joint statement and action program to be announced during his visit, which will give direction for further promoting and strengthening the cooperative relationship between the two countries. All in all, we expect that this historic visit will open a new page in our bilateral relations.

   Related Information (Visit to Japan of His Excellency Mr. Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran)
   
3. Visit to Japan by President Kuniwo Nakamura of the Republic of Palau and Mrs. Nakamura

   Mr. Harada: I would like to move on to announcements concerning Japan's relationship with the Pacific Island countries. First, today the Cabinet approved that President Kuniwo Nakamura of the Republic of Palau and Mrs. Nakamura will visit Japan from 11-15 November and stay as official working visit guests from 11-14 November. During their stay in Japan, a state call on Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress and a Court Luncheon will be arranged. President Nakamura will also meet Prime Minister Mori.

   The Government of Japan welcomes President Nakamura's visit and believes that his visit will deepen friendship between Palau and Japan, as well as further promote the relationship between the Pacific Island countries and Japan.

   Related Information (Japan-Palau Relations)
   
4. Attendance of State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Katsuhito Asano at the 12^thPost Forum Dialogue of the South Pacific Forum

   Mr. Harada: The second item concerning the Pacific Island countries is that State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Katsuhito Asano will be dispatched to the Republic of Kiribati to attend the 12^thPost Forum Dialogue of the South Pacific Forum (SPF) to be held on 1 November and to have bilateral meetings with the leaders of SPF members.

   Japan invited the leaders of SPF member countries to host the Second Japan-South Pacific Forum Summit Meeting in April this year. Japan announced that it would conduct more active diplomacy toward the Pacific Island countries. State Secretary Asano's attendance at the Post Forum Dialogue will strengthen friendly and cooperative relations between the Pacific Island countries and Japan.

   Related Information (Japan and the Pacific Islands Forum Relations (PIF))
   
5. Joint letter to President Bill Clinton of the United States from the Japanese, European Commission (EC) and Canadian Ambassadors to the United States

   Mr. Harada: On 25 October the Government of Japan sent a letter to President Bill Clinton of the United States under the joint signature of the Ambassadors to the United States of Japan, Canada and the European Commission (EC) on continued dumping and subsidy offset act of the United States. I would like to share with you the gist of the letter as follows. "We (the Ambassadors) urge you (President Clinton) to veto the H.R. 4461, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Act Appropriations Act, 2001. The reason for this unique joint letter is our mutual concern created by Section X of the Act, Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset, the so-called Byrd Amendment, which seeks to create changes in the usage of duties collected by the Government of the United States in anti-dumping and countervailing duty cases. We view this section of the bill as a serious violation of US obligations under the anti-dumping and countervailing duty codes of the WTO. We therefore strongly urge you to veto this measure, thereby avoiding the gratuitous creation of another serious trade problem with the WTO trade partners of the United States."

   Related Information (Japan-The United States Relations)
   
6. Election of Mr. Rudolphus Franciscus Marie Lubbers as the next United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

   Mr. Harada: Japan welcomes the election of Mr. Rudolphus Franciscus Marie Lubbers, former Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, who was elected at the United Nations General Assembly on October 26 as the next United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), based on the appointment by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

   Mr. Lubbers has demonstrated his skill as a politician for many years in his capacity as Prime Minister of the Netherlands, as well as being active as an academic. We therefore believe that his ability and insight, which are widely recognized by the international community, make him the most appropriate person to assume the important and difficult post of High Commissioner.

   Japan expects that Mr. Lubbers will continue to further develop the achievements of his predecessor Mrs. Sadako Ogata, and Japan intends to continue its support for the Office.

   Related Information (Japan and the United Nations)
   
7. Questions relating to the visit of President Khatami to Japan

   Q: Are Mr. Mori and Mr. Khatami going to sign any agreement on a new loan to Iran?

   Mr. Harada: Are you talking about a yen loan?

   Q: Yes.

   Mr. Harada: As far as the yen loan is concerned, we have a policy that we consider the yen loan based upon the ODA Charter. We have a request from the Iranian side for a project concerning a railway construction, but we have not finished the feasibility study of that project, and until the upcoming visit we will not have much time to finish the study. As such, I do not think that there will be any signing of a new yen loan to Iran.

   Q: Will Mr. Khatami be the second foreign leader who will speak in parliament?

   Mr. Harada: I do not think he is the second leader. There are other leaders who have made speeches at the Diet. As I told you before, we believe it will serve as a good occasion to let Japanese people understand and know the new Iran, as well as the reform policy conducted by the President in Iran.

   Q: Do you expect any signing by the Japanese Government of an agreement on trade insurance investment projects in Iran?

   Mr. Harada: Iran is now making development efforts based on the Third Five-Year Economic Plan, and we are studying what would be the appropriate way for Japan to help such efforts. So at this stage I cannot give you the possible results of that study.

   Q: I read a report by a Japanese news agency quoting a Foreign Ministry official as saying that Iran's policy was counter to the Middle East peace process. What is your position on this?

   Mr. Harada: Let us put it this way, I suppose that in the meeting between Prime Minister Mori and President Khatami they will exchange views on wide-ranging issues, including the Middle East peace process. We would like to find the possibility to cooperate with Iran in the area of the Middle East peace process.

   Related Information (Visit to Japan of His Excellency Mr. Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran)
   
8. Other issues

   Q: Do you have any comment on Mr. Nakagawa's resignation?

   Mr. Harada: I think it goes beyond my mandate to make a comment on internal politics.

   Q: Do you expect the external political situation to change as a result of Mr. Nakagawa's resignation and the criticism that Mr. Mori is receiving? Do you think this will affect Japanese diplomatic events?

   Mr. Harada: Such as?

   Q: Such as the visits by dignitaries, or on foreign policy in general.

   Mr. Harada: As I told you, I cannot make a comment on internal politics. But what I can say on diplomacy is that we will continue our diplomacy as we have been conducting, and I do not think that we will see any effect on our diplomatic activities.