Press Conference 17 January 2003

1. Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoriko Kawaguchi's visits to the French Republic and the Republic of Korea
2. Meeting between Minister for Foreign Affairs Kawaguchi and Ambassador Howard Baker of the United States of America
3. Question concerning the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO)
4. Question concerning upcoming visit to Japan by Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly of the United States
5. Question concerning situation regarding North Korea
6. Question concerning UN weapons inspections in the Republic of Iraq
7. Question concerning changes to entry formalities to the United States

1. Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoriko Kawaguchi's visits to the French Republic and the Republic of Korea

   Press Secretary Hatsuhisa Takashima: Good afternoon, thank you very much for coming to this briefing. Today, I have two announcements I would like to make.

   The first announcement is that Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoriko Kawaguchi successfully concluded her visits to the French Republic and the Republic of Korea and returned to Tokyo yesterday.

   During her stay in France and also in the Republic of Korea, she met with the leaders of the countries and had very meaningful and fruitful discussions on bilateral as well as multilateral issues, especially on the situation concerning North Korea.

   Related Information (Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi's Visit to France)
   Related Information (Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi's Visit to the Republic of Korea)
   
2. Meeting between Minister for Foreign Affairs Kawaguchi and Ambassador Howard Baker of the United States of America

   Mr. Takashima: The second announcement is that Foreign Minister Kawaguchi met with Ambassador Howard Baker of the United States of America this morning at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

   She discussed with him the results of her visit to France, the Republic of Korea, and a previous visit to the Republic of India and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. This discussion was part of the regular contact between the Foreign Minister of Japan and the Ambassador of the United States.

   Related Information (Japan-The United States Relations)
   
3. Question concerning the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO)

   Q: There were press reports this morning in one of the Japanese newspapers that there have been plans going on between Japan and the United States to revise or renew the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) Agreement to perhaps include the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China. What is the actual situation?

   Mr. Takashima: There is no ongoing consultation on the future of KEDO or revision of the KEDO Agreement between Japan and the United States, or within the Government of Japan itself. Rather, we are still urging North Korea to abandon its nuclear development program and enter into discussion with Japan, the United States and the Republic of Korea, abiding by the agreements they made with the international community, including the Japan-Democratic People's Republic of Korea Pyongyang Declaration that was signed between our two countries.

   Related Information (The Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO))
   
4. Question concerning upcoming visit to Japan by Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly of the United States

   Q: Will Foreign Minister Kawaguchi and Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly of the United States meet when he comes?

   Mr. Takashima: Assistant Secretary of State Kelly will be in Tokyo on 21 January. His schedule is still under consideration, and nothing has been finalized yet. However, one or two of the top officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will certainly have discussions with him.

   Related Information (Japan-The United States Relations)
   
5. Question concerning situation regarding North Korea

   Q: Is there any plan to dispatch a Special Envoy to Russia or China in order to discuss and resolve the situation in North Korea with the governments of those two countries?

   Mr. Takashima: We are studying the ways and means to have dialogue with China, as well as Russia, to resolve the questions regarding North Korea. However, there is no such plan as dispatching Special Envoys to those countries at the moment.

   Q: It has been a week since North Korea's decision to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). In the meantime, they have rejected US proposals for talks. Have you had any unofficial contacts with North Korea? Have the North Koreans made any approaches about possible talks with Japanese or US officials?

   Mr. Takashima: We have several unofficial channels for exchanging views between North Korea and Japan, including that between the Japanese Embassy and the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, and we are conveying our message urging them to start negotiations or talks with us, as well as the international community. Unfortunately, there has been no positive response from them so far, and we are still waiting for a positive reply from the North Korean side to have the second round of normalization talks between Japan and North Korea. They are still pending, and so are the security talks between Japan and North Korea.

   Q: There have been reports about a framework of consultation among the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, Japan and the Republic of Korea. Has that idea been proposed by Japan so far?

   Mr. Takashima: During her visit to France and the Republic of Korea, Foreign Minister Kawaguchi discussed the issue of close consultation between the members of the UN Security Council, in particular the permanent members, and Japan and the Republic of Korea. Both countries have a very strong interest in the issues concerning North Korea, including North Korea's nuclear development program.

   Japan, France and the Republic of Korea all agreed that Japan and the Republic of Korea should be in close touch with the discussion to be held at the UN Security Council once the issue is brought here. However, what sort of mechanism would be formed or what framework would be created has not been decided yet. The basic idea of close consultation between Japan, the Republic of Korea and the P5 countries has been agreed upon. France, as the chair of the Security Council, was quite agreeable to have this kind of close consultation.

   Q: Is there any discussion of possible concessions or initiatives to make North Korea come to the table along the lines of KEDO?

   Mr. Takashima: The future of KEDO is always a matter of study by the members that participate in that mechanism. However, there is no ongoing discussion of the future of KEDO currently among the member states.

   As for concessions, we are aware that the American side has said that once North Korea has abandoned its nuclear development program, there would be a possibility of providing them various types of assistance, including in the energy field.

   On our side, as far as the Government of Japan is concerned, we are willing to discuss with them economic assistance when the normalization talks resume. Once normalization is achieved, Japan will be providing various types of economic cooperation to North Korea.

   Q: What kind of cooperation would that be?

   Mr. Takashima: Please refer to the Japan-DPRK Pyongyang Declaration, which was signed between Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and General Secretary Kim Jong Il of North Korea. In that Declaration, the specific types of Japanese economic assistance are mentioned, such as yen credit, short-term grants and loans, among others.

   Q: So when the normalization talks begin, then at the same time aid will be given?

   Mr. Takashima: Then, the discussions would start, but the actual assistance would be given once normalization has been achieved.

   Related Information (Japan-North Korea Relations)
   
6. Question concerning UN weapons inspections in the Republic of Iraq

   Q: On Iraq, UN inspectors discovered empty vials meant to carry chemical agents. What is Japan's position on this? Do you think it provides new evidence that Iraq has a hidden weapons development program?

   Mr. Takashima: We have been monitoring various reports, including press reports from Iraq on the activities of the inspection teams, as well as information provided by the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

   On that particular report on the discovery of the shells, which would be capable of containing chemical agents, of course we noticed that news report, but we do not have any precise information, so it is still very difficult to make a comment on that. I believe we should wait until 27 January, when the UN team makes its interim report to the UN Security Council, in which we will be able to learn what sort of findings they have made.

   Related Information (Japan's Diplomatic Efforts on the Issue of Iraq)
   
7. Question concerning changes to entry formalities to the United States

   Q: At the moment, we have a visa waiver program between Japan and the United States, but the process of entering the United States will change and become very severe. Have you received any information on this from the US Embassy?

   Mr. Takashima: I am sorry, I am not aware of it.