Press Conference 6 February 2001

1. Announcement on the postponement of the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of the Republic of India
2. Update on emergency assistance to India
3. Announcement on the Middle East Counter-terrorism Conference in Tokyo
4. Upcoming visit to Japan by Prime Minister Nambaryn Enkhbayar of Mongolia
5. Follow-up question on the postponement of the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Vajpayee
6. Follow-up questions on emergency assistance to India
7. Question on the Middle East Counter-terrorism Conference in Tokyo
8. Question on the meeting between Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and Prime Minister Rariq Hariri of the Republic of Lebanon
9. Question on messages conveyed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa of the State of Bahrain

1. Announcement on the postponement of the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of the Republic of India

   Press Secretary Norio Hattori: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. First of all I would like to take up the issue of the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of the Republic of India.

   Prime Minister Vajpayee was supposed to visit Japan from 10-14 February as an official guest of the Government of Japan. However, because of the earthquake that occurred in India, the Indian government has requested that Prime Minister Vajpayee's visit to Japan be postponed.

   The Indian government wishes to communicate through diplomatic channels with our government over the most appropriate timing for the rescheduling of the Indian prime minister's visit to Japan. This message was reported and accepted in the Cabinet meeting this morning.

   Related Information (Japan-India Relations)
   
2. Update on emergency assistance to India

   Mr. Hattori: With regard to our assistance in the wake of the Indian earthquake disaster, this morning the Government of Japan decided to send a third batch of assistance in the form of emergency grant assistance amounting to US$2.3 million, which will be donated in cash.

   As I said, this is the third batch of the Government's assistance to India. The first batch of assistance was decided immediately after the earthquake occurred on 27 January, that comprised grant assistance amounting to US$700,000 in cash plus supplies amounting to 30 million yen. The second batch of assistance was what I announced at my last press conference.

   Although I announced that a team from the Self-Defense Forces was going to be sent to India, consisting mainly of doctors and nurses, we had dispatched a preliminary survey team to the site in India, and on the basis of the survey made by that team we changed the content of our assistance from doctors and nurses to supplying tents and blankets. This was based on the assessment of the preliminary survey team that the need for medical assistance had fallen from its previous level.

   So at this point in time the Government of Japan's total assistance to India in response to the earthquake amounts to approximately 416 million yen.

   Related Information (Earthquake in India)
   
3. Announcement on the Middle East Counter-terrorism Conference in Tokyo

   Mr. Hattori: In 1996 at the Lyon Summit then Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto proposed closer cooperation between the developed countries, which are supposed to have the know-how on measures to counter terrorism, and the developing countries, which may have apprehensions and problems regarding terrorism. On the basis of this proposal made by then Prime Minister Hashimoto, the first meeting was held in 1996 between Asian and Pacific nations. Subsequently, the second meeting was held in 1997 between Japan and the countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the third meeting was held in 1998 between Asia and Latin American countries, and the fourth meeting was held in 1999 between countries from Asia and the Middle East. All of those meetings were held in Tokyo.

   The Middle East Counter-terrorism Conference, the meeting that is currently underway in Tokyo, is the fifth meeting. In attendance at this meeting are representatives from the Arab Republic of Egypt, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Jordan, United Arab Emirates, and from Japan, officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Police Agency responsible for terrorism matters. This meeting is supposed to provide a forum for the representatives from the participating countries to exchange views and information on international terrorism.

   Related Information (Japan-Middle East Relations)
   Related Information (Counter Terrorism)
   
4. Upcoming visit to Japan by Prime Minister Nambaryn Enkhbayar of Mongolia

   Mr. Hattori: My next announcement is on the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Nambaryn Enkhbayar of Mongolia.

   Prime Minister Enkhbayar will visit Japan from 13-18 February with Mrs. Enkhbayar on the invitation of the Government of Japan. As you know, there was an election in Mongolia in July last year, and we understand that this visit to Japan by Prime Minister Enkhbayar is his first official visit abroad.

   Related Information (Japan-Mongolia Relations)
   
5. Follow-up question on the postponement of the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Vajpayee

   Q: Prime Minister Vajpayee has postponed his visit, so how long do you think it will take to reschedule it, and will it be within this year?

   Mr. Hattori: I have no idea on that at this point in time. We understand the circumstances under which the Indian government is placed. We would like to reschedule the visit, as soon as possible, for a time that is appropriate for both governments.

   Related Information (Japan-India Relations)
   
6. Follow-up questions on emergency assistance to India

   Q: Last week you announced a Self-Defense Forces relief mission, and you said it had changed, but still you are sending a military mission. So why was Japan so insistent in sending a military mission, while all other countries are sending civilian rescue missions?

   Mr. Hattori: We are not insisting on sending our military into that country. This is the third batch of official governmental assistance that Japan has extended to India, and on top of that governmental assistance, as I said at my previous press conference, there are also many nongovernmental organizations (NGOS) that are already working at the site. The reason why we are sending teams from the Self-Defense Forces is that this is the most appropriate organization in Japan prepared to carry out the mission.

   Q: This time when the Japanese Government has decided to utilize the Self-Defense Forces in assisting in response to the Indian earthquake disaster, there was an argument that the Defense Agency has been rather more enthusiastic in utilizing their capacity than the Foreign Ministry. Is this true or not? Is there any link between using the Self-Defense Forces at this time and the deliberations over the legal framework or institutions for coping with the national state of emergency?

   Mr. Hattori: In response to your first question, the operation at this time has been carried out according to the law already passed in the Diet several years ago, and this is not the first time that the Self-Defense Forces have been utilized to assist in response to large-scale disasters overseas.

   It is not my understanding that the Defense Agency was any more eager to use the Self-Defense Forces at this time than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In order to cope with such large-scale disasters, in Japan's case, the Self-Defense Forces are much more flexible and responsive in the face of emergency organizations compared to the civil organizations, and that is the reason why we have used the Self-Defense Forces.

   On the second question, it is distorting the situation to try to link the utilization of the Self-Defense Forces in this case and the problem regarding the national state of emergency law. It is true that in the policy speech made by Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori in the opening of the Diet, the prime minister proposed starting deliberations on the necessity of a state of emergency law, but an attempt to link those issues seems to me to be distorting the issue.

   Related Information (Earthquake in India)
   
7. Question on the Middle East Counter-terrorism Conference in Tokyo

   Q: Do you have more information about the meeting on terrorism, what are its objectives and who are the officials participating?

   Mr. Hattori: The objective of the meeting is first of all to take stock of the situation with regard to international terrorism and to discuss measures, if any, to take against international terrorism.

   In addition to Japan, the participating countries are Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates; all of those participating from those countries are in charge of countering terrorism. The representatives from Japan are Director-General Masaaki Ono of the Consular and Migration Affairs Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Director-General Yoshiyuki Kaneshige of the Security Bureau of the National Police Agency.

   Related Information (Japan-Middle East Relations)
   Related Information (Counter Terrorism)
   
8. Question on the meeting between Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and Prime Minister Rariq Hariri of the Republic of Lebanon

   Q: Do you have any information on the meeting between Prime Minister Mori and Prime Minister Hariri?

   Mr. Hattori: I do not think that I have more information than you already know.

   Related Information (Japan-Lebanon Relations)
   
9. Question on messages conveyed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa of the State of Bahrain

   Q: Did the Bahraini foreign minister give a message or a letter to Mr. Kono? I read a report that he gave a message, was it a letter, something concerning relations between the two countries? I read a report that he conveyed a message from the leader of Bahrain?

   Mr. Hattori: I understand that there was a joint declaration issued after the discussions between Minister for Foreign Affairs Yohei Kono and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa of the State of Bahrain.

   Minister of Foreign Affairs Al-Khalifa conveyed two messages from Amir Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa: The first message was a message of friendship to the Japanese people from the people of Bahrain, and the second message was a slightly more detailed letter enclosing a proposal on how to strengthen bilateral relations between Japan and Bahrain. I think the joint declaration was made on the basis of the second message.

   Related Information (Japan-Bahrain Relations)