Press Conference 21 April 2006
- Japan-New Zealand bilateral meeting
- Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
- Vice-Minister (Parliamentary) for Foreign Affairs Kiyohiko Toyama to attend the International Energy Business Forum (IEBF) and the International Energy Forum (IEF)
- Japan-Iran Director-General Consultation
- Exchange of notes concerning the Cooperation on Information Assurance and Computer Network Defense
- Japan-US working level meeting on security issues
- National Trade Estimate Report (2006)
- Grassroots human security grant aid to Al-Muthanna, Iraq
- Assistance for "Reducing Socio-Economic Vulnerabilities of Selected Peri-Urban and Informal Mining Communities in Mongolia" Project
- Assistance for "Integrated Approach for the Protection of Vulnerable Populations Affected by the Colombian Conflict on Ecuador's Northern Border" Project
- Assistance for "Natural disasters in Peru: from Damage Limitation to Risk Management and Prevention" Project
- Questions concerning assistance to Palestinian Territory
- Questions concerning the hydrographic survey in the Sea of Japan
- Questions concerning Abduction case of Megumi Yokota
- Japan-New Zealand bilateral meeting
Deputy Press Secretary Tomohiko Taniguchi: Thank you very much for coming and good afternoon. Let me just quickly go through some of the announcements that I have to make for today.
First about the bilateral meeting between Associate Minister for Trade Negotiations Jim Sutton of New Zealand and Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Yasuhisa Shiozaki of Japan.
This took place on 18 April (Tue) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They talked about how to enhance bilateral relationships and how best we could cooperate through the newly launched framework of the East Asia Summit (EAS). Within the meeting, it was appreciated that on a host of different levels the bilateral relationship between both nations has been strengthened in accordance with the Japan-New Zealand joint press statement that was issued in June of last year after the Summit Meeting between the two leaders, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Prime Minister Helen Clark.
So that is about the bilateral meeting between the two nations Japan and New Zealand.
- Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
Mr. Taniguchi: Next item is about the new treaty going into effect called the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. That went into effect on 20 April (Thu).
This was a treaty that the Government of Japan worked very much hard to create, the inspiration for this treaty came originally from a similar framework that has long been in place in Japan to protect intangible cultural heritage, like people engaged in traditional artwork. So we are very much happy to be able to announce that the treaty is now in effect.
- Vice-Minister (Parliamentary) for Foreign Affairs Kiyohiko Toyama to attend the International Energy Business Forum (IEBF) and the International Energy Forum (IEF)
Mr. Taniguchi: Next, Vice-Minister (Parliamentary) for Foreign Affairs Kiyohiko Toyama is to attend the International Energy Business Forum (IEBF) and the International Energy Forum (IEF) due to be held in Doha on 22 April (Sat) and 23 (Sun) respectively.
The IEBF and the IEF will be hosted by Qatar and will be attended by Dr. Toyama and Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshihiro Nikai from the Japanese side and other minister-level and secretary-general-level representatives respectively from 69 countries and seven international organizations.
- Japan-Iran Director-General Consultation
Mr. Taniguchi: The next item is about the Japan-Iran Director-General Consultation.
The Japan-Iran Director-General Consultation is going to be held in Tehran, Iran on 22 April (Sat).
From Japan Director-General Motohide Yoshikawa of the Middle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs is going to be in Tehran and will talk to Director-General Nematollah Izadi of the East Asia and Oceania Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran.
This meeting was agreed to be held when Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki of Iran came to Japan at the end of February to talk with Minister for Foreign Affairs Taro Aso. In the meeting a variety of issues such as the bilateral relationships and regional and international situation are going to be discussed.
- Exchange of notes concerning the Cooperation on Information Assurance and Computer Network Defense
Mr. Taniguchi: Next three items are about the US-Japan bilateral relationship. The first one is about the exchange of notes concerning the cooperation on information assurance and computer network defense based on the Mutual Defense Assistance (MDA) agreement between Japan and the United States of America (US).
The exchange of notes took place on 18 April (Tue) between Foreign Minister Aso and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary John Thomas Schieffer of the US. As part of the cooperation they talked about what sort of framework will be needed to better exchange information and how best to tackle cyber attack.
Detailed implementing arrangements will be made between the Defense Agency of Japan and the Department of Defense of the United States.
- Japan-US working level meeting on security issues
Mr. Taniguchi: The Japan-US Deputy Director-General level meeting on security issues will be held from 24 April (Mon) in Washington, D.C.
The Japanese side will be led by Deputy Director-General Kazuyoshi Umemoto of the North American Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Deputy Director-General Hironori Kanazawa of the Defense Policy Bureau of the Japan Defense Agency, and the US side will be led by Deputy Under-Secretary of Defense Richard Lawless of the US.
In the meeting, there will be an exchange of views concerning recommendations on realignment set out at the Japan-US Security Consultative Committee(2+2 Meeting) on 29 October, 2005.
- National Trade Estimate Report (2006)
Mr. Taniguchi: Now the Government of Japan in response to the United States Trade Representative's 2006 National Trade Estimate Report on foreign trade barriers has issued comments.
- Grassroots human security grant aid to Al-Muthanna, Iraq
Mr. Taniguchi: The last couple of items are about ODA efforts. The first one is the one to Iraq. It is grassroots human security grant aid to Al-Muthanna, Iraq.
The name of the project is the Project for the Rehabilitation of Mutawag Al-Chbashi Road in Al-Muthanna. It is a road that was renovated by the financing of the Government of Japan and the length of the road renovated was about 6.7km.
A ceremony to celebrate the completion of the project took place on 18 April (Wed). The amount of money that the Government of Japan provided was 75 million yen (approximately US$706 thousand).
- Assistance for "Reducing Socio-Economic Vulnerabilities of Selected Peri-Urban and Informal Mining Communities in Mongolia" Project
Mr. Taniguchi: Also to Mongolia there is a support for a project called "Reducing Socio-Economic Vulnerabilities of Selected Peri-Urban and Informal Mining Communities in Mongolia" Project, that is the name of the project.
On 21 April (Fri), the Government of Japan and the United Nations (UN) decided to extend assistance totaling US$988,235.89 (approximately 109.7 million yen), through the Trust Fund for Human Security to a project entitled "Reducing Socio-Economic Vulnerabilities of Selected Peri-Urban and Informal Mining Communities in Mongolia" that will be implemented by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
This project is expected to improve the livelihoods and dignities of the unregistered migrants in Mongolia.
- Assistance for "Integrated Approach for the Protection of Vulnerable Populations Affected by the Colombian Conflict on Ecuador's Northern Border" Project
Mr. Taniguchi: On 19 April (Wed), the Government of Japan and the United Nations (UN) decided to extend assistance totalling US$1,914,219.88 (approximately 212.5 million yen), through the Trust Fund for Human Security to a project entitled "Integrated Approach for the Protection of Vulnerable Populations Affected by the Colombian Conflict on Ecuador's Northern Border" that will be implemented by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
- Assistance for "Natural disasters in Peru: from Damage Limitation to Risk Management and Prevention" Project
Mr. Taniguchi: On 20 April (Thu), the Government of Japan and the United Nations (UN) decided to extend assistance totalling US$1,576,484.62 (approximately 1.75 million yen), through the Trust Fund for Human Security to a project entitled "Natural disasters in Peru: from Damage Limitation to Risk Management and Prevention" that will be implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO).
- Questions concerning assistance to Palestinian Territory
Q: It seems that Japan has frozen assistance to the Palestinian Territory. On what basis did Japan halt the aid to Palestine?
Mr. Taniguchi: I have to correct your assumption. I know that there was a report that Japan would "halt" aid to the Palestinian Territory, but I should say that so far as humanitarian assistance is concerned, nothing has been changed; however, we are waiting on things in terms of infrastructure. So that is the position of the Government of Japan. You can actually see very little has changed.
Q: So you are saying that these reports are groundless?
Mr. Taniguchi: One of them was actually groundless and I know that it was carried by one of the regional newspapers. My colleagues have been busy correcting those misinformed reports.
Q: So the stance concerning human assistance is still continuing?
Mr. Taniguchi: Humanitarian support yes. But when it comes to supporting infrastructure projects we are waiting to see what sorts of policies will come out from Hamas.
Q: You know Hamas was elected on democratic circumstances and Japan was one of the countries that sent observers. So did your observers give the impression that if the Palestinians voted for Hamas they would be waiting on the amount of assistance from the Japanese Government?
Mr. Taniguchi: I have said a number of times at this conference that the election was held in a democratic fashion. But democracy is not just about elections it is about many other things; rule of law, respect for peace, and freedom of speech and so on and so forth. Certainly violent means should be condemned by all means. So that is part of democracy and we are watching keenly how democratic the Hamas Government is going to be.
Q: In relation to the question of Hamas, just to clarify, the Government of Japan's policy is that until Hamas shows a softer stance towards Israel that---
Mr. Taniguchi: More precisely we would very much like both parties to stick to the Road Map and stick to non-violent means to achieve their goals. That is the basic principle that the Government of Japan is holding.
Q: I suppose the way that the US policy towards Hamas will also be taken into consideration?
Mr. Taniguchi: The Government of Japan has its own policy towards Hamas. So far as official development assistance (ODA) is concerned what I have just said is part of Japan's policy.
Q: Are you planning for any assistance or have you provided any assistance to Palestine after Hamas was elected?
Mr. Taniguchi: Yes, Japan decided to extend aid amounting to approximately US$6 million since Hamas was elected.
Related Information (Japan-Palestinian Authorities Relations) - Questions concerning the hydrographic survey in the Sea of Japan
Q: Yes I have a question about the Republic of Korean (ROK) Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade who is reported to have said that ROK has never said it will register its name in the June Conference in Germany regarding the hydrographic survey that Japan is planning to conduct, so they said they never planned to submit these names. Is that your understanding or can you give me a comment on this statement?
Mr. Taniguchi: I have seen and read the report through the newspapers and TV reports, but I am not in a position to comment whether ROK are actually going to take up this issue at the coming meeting, so I am afraid that I cannot make any comment.
Q: But then the reason why the Japan Coast Guard (JCG) is out there preparing to conduct this survey is because ROK was preparing to submit these names. Is it not?
Mr. Taniguchi: The fact of the matter is there is a circular distributed amongst the members participating in this project called General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans. (According to the Circular) the meeting is going to be starting on 14 June (Wed) and is due to end on 21 June (Wed) and is going to be held in Germany. As usual the issue of giving names to hydrographic structures is going to be discussed and the Japanese Government, based on the research and surveys conducted by the coast guard ships, has been proposing a number of times new names to this gathering. There have been occasions when the Japanese names were actually adopted.
For example, there is actually a joint guiding committee for what is called GEBCO, General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans, jointly run by an institution called Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission and International Hydrographic Organization. There are ten committee members, one of whom is Doctor Kunio Yashima, who is a Japanese expert. He has actually submitted names such as Akino Nanakusa, which is the seven flowers of autumn, Haru no Nanakusa, the seven flowers of spring, and gengo names, gengo being Japanese era.
So such names as those have been submitted and have been adopted by these organizations successfully and based on these surveys the Japan Coast Guard seems to be interested in submitting, in a similar fashion, new names. But I am not in a position to clarify that, I am just pulling together information based on past records.
Q: I believe Vice-Minister Shotaro Yachi and Director-General Kenichiro Sasae are both heading to Seoul to meet ROK officials on this matter. Can you elaborate on what kind of a discussion will materialize?
Mr. Taniguchi: They are now flying over the Japan Sea and are going to arrive in Seoul in about an hour. The discussion is going to be focused on resolving this heated issue between the two nations. To solve this issue in a very much diplomatic and peaceful fashion, that is the most important objective of Mr. Yachi and Mr. Sasae.
Q: So can we assume that an option is to stop conducting the survey depending on how ROK will react?
Mr. Taniguchi: I remember and understand that Minister Kazuo Kitagawa (Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport) said this morning that so far as discussions are going on between the two nations, the survey will not be conducted.
Q: On this issue how to describe the relations now between Japan and ROK? Is there any deterioration in the relations between the two nations because of these problems?
Mr. Taniguchi: The reason why Mr. Yachi and Mr. Sasae are headed for Republic of Korea is not to have a deterioration of any sort between the two nations. It is too early to talk about deterioration between the two nations, it is not a good thing to happen and that is why we are going there.
Q: Was ROK's reaction to this survey foreseeable or did the emotional reaction come as a surprise?
Mr. Taniguchi: This issue has been made an emotional issue and so we have to get rid of the steam from the heat that the debate has gotten into; sometimes diplomats are like firefighters.
Q: Just to follow up on that question, did the reaction by the Republic of Korea come as a surprise.
Mr. Taniguchi: In a sense it was a surprise that it became such an emotional issue. But I do not think that it is in the interest of the nations to focus on whether or not it was a surprise; the bottom line is that we have to solve it in a very much diplomatic and peaceful fashion.
- Questions concerning Abduction case of Megumi Yokota
Q: Concerning the talks between North Korea and Republic of Korea that I believe are taking place in the next couple of weeks has Japan discussed with ROK officials regarding Megumi Yokota's so-called Republic of Korean husband and can ROK do something to resolve this issue during their talks with North Korea?
Mr. Taniguchi: I do not know at the moment but it is to be hoped that this issue is going to be raised.
Q: Has the Japanese or ROK Government held any negotiations in regards to the abduction issue following the revelation that Megumi's Father was from ROK?
Mr. Taniguchi: Apparently there have been discussions going on between the two Ministries for Foreign Affairs, but in what way the issue is going to be raised or not between the North and ROK during the talks...... I am not in a position to make any comment on that.
Q: Regarding the discussion between Japan and ROK concerning Megumi Yokota's husband, any progress being made?
Mr. Taniguchi: Well the crux of the matter exists not so much between Republic of Korea and Japan, as between North Korea and Japan.
Q: But in terms of the Republic of Korea and Japan cooperating to pressure North Korea on this issue?
Mr. Taniguchi: Certainly there are discussions going on between both ministries and the Japanese Government's position has always been a two structured approach of dialogue and pressure. I think the ROK Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade have been well aware of that position of the Government of Japan.
Q: How would you describe the level of cooperation between the Japan and ROK regarding this issue?
Mr. Taniguchi: Well it is a hard question to answer, you are asking not about the existence of cooperation, but about the degree of discussion between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs. It is an issue which I find very hard to answer in a black and white fashion. So I will refrain from making any comment on that.
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