Top > Announcement > Press Conference by the Press Secretary of MOFA > 22 September 2011

Press Conference by the Deputy Press Secretary, 22 September 2011

  1. Terrorist attack in Afghanistan
  2. Situation in Yemen
  3. APEC High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy
  4. Prime Minister's visit to the United Nations in New York
  5. Foreign Minister's visit to the United Nations in New York
  6. Official visits and international events
  7. Questions concerning Foreign Minister's meetings in New York
  8. Question concerning Yemen
  9. Question concerning Japanese students studying abroad
  10. Question concerning appreciation of the yen

  1. Terrorist attack in Afghanistan

    2. Deputy Press Secretary Naoko Saiki: Good afternoon. Today I would like to announce a few topics before taking questions.

    Ms. Saiki: The first topic I would like to pick up is the statement by the Minister for Foreign Affairs on the terrorist attack in Afghanistan.

    The Government of Japan is greatly shocked and indignant at the bomb attack on 20 September in Kabul in which Mr. Rabbani, Chairman of the High Peace Council, was killed and Dr. Stanekzai, the Advisor to the President, was injured. The Government of Japan expresses deepest condolences for Mr. Rabbani and his bereaved families and our heartfelt sympathy to Dr. Stanekzai.

    The Government of Japan expresses its firm condemnations of these atrocious acts of terrorism. Japan condemns terrorism in any forms and manifestations and reiterates that there can be no justification, whatsoever, for any acts of terrorism.

    The Government of Japan hopes that Afghanistan will overcome this tragedy and continue to work for the stabilization of Afghanistan, including through its political process. Japan remains committed to continue our cooperation as much as possible for the stabilization and reconstruction of Afghanistan.

  2. Situation in Yemen

    3. Ms. Saiki: The second item that I would like to introduce to you is on the situation in Yemen.

    On Sunday, 18 September and Monday, 19 September Yemen security forces and others opened fire on demonstrators in Sana’a, the capital of the Republic of Yemen, resulting in many deaths and injuries.

    Japan expresses its great regret at the deaths totaling more than 300 people and a large number of injuries resulting from the crash and from a series of incidents in Yemen. Japan strongly urges the Government of Yemen to respond to peaceful demonstrators in a restrained manner and to refrain from the use of violence against them.

    In order for Yemen to avoid further conflict and to restore its stability, Japan strongly expects that the initiative offered by the Gulf Cooperation Council be signed at the earliest possible date, leading to the implementation of peace transition and power.

  3. APEC High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy

    4. Ms. Saiki: The third topic that I would like to introduce is the APEC High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy taking place on 16 September in San Francisco, the United States.

    As I stated last week, the Parliamentary Vice-Minister Mr. Nakano went to San Francisco, the United States, to attend this very important meeting in the context of APEC. Secretary of State Hilary Rodham Clinton organized and hosted this event and after the very useful and productive discussions this meeting produced a declaration, the so-called San Francisco Declaration, to be presented to the Summit meeting to be held in Honolulu in November this year.

    For your reference, we have distributed a sheet of paper with respect to this meeting as well as the Declaration, which I have just referred to.

  4. Prime Minister's visit to the United Nations in New York

    5. Ms. Saiki: In addition to these announcements I have to say that as we are aware Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba are visiting New York, the United States, now to attend a series of United Nations meetings and bilateral consultations. Through these meetings and consultations, the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister of Japan wish to establish a relationship of trust with their respective counterparts all over the world. For instance, yesterday, on 20 September Prime Minister Noda held a summit meeting with the President of the United States, Mr. Obama, in the morning, followed by a summit meeting with his Canadian counterpart and another one with his counterpart from the Republic of Korea. Toward the late evening, Prime Minister Noda met with Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General.

    Today, Thursday, Prime Minister Noda is going to attend a high-level meeting on nuclear safety and security, and on 23 September, Friday, he is going to make a speech at the United Nations General Assembly. He is to depart from New York for Tokyo Friday afternoon.

  5. Foreign Minister's visit to the United Nations in New York

    6. Ms. Saiki: The Foreign Minister, Mr. Gemba, conducted bilateral meetings with his counterparts very extensively and very energetically, starting with a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of the United States and a meeting with his counterparts of Pakistan, Egypt, Russia, Indonesia, and some other very important countries. Also, Foreign Minister Gemba attended the Friends of Libya meeting on Tuesday morning and the Group of Eight Foreign Ministers’ meeting (the ministerial-level follow-up meeting on the Deauville partnership) afterwards. On Wednesday, as a side event of the United Nations General Assembly meeting, he is going to participate in the Millennium Development Goals event and host the third Foreign Ministers’ meeting on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation (NPDI).

  6. Official visits and international events

    7. Ms. Saiki: Lastly, I would like to provide you with some information about visits and events. On 21-23 September, Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven of the International Energy Agency (IEA) is visiting Tokyo. From 25 to 27 September, there is going to be a meeting of the 43rd Annual Joint Meeting of the Mid-west United States - Japan Association and the Japan - Mid-west United States Association. On this occasion governors of the four States, namely Ohio, Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan, will come to Japan. From 25 to 29 September, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bhutan, Mr. Jigme Yoser Thinley, will be visiting Japan. Also, from 25 to 28 September, Mr. Benigno Aquino III, President of the Republic of the Philippines, will pay an official working visit to Japan. The beginning of the next month, to be more specific, 1-2 October, is the period during which Global Festa 2011 will take place in Hibiya Park.

    This concludes my opening remarks. I would love to take questions from you.

  7. Questions concerning Foreign Minister's meetings in New York

    8. Q: The Foreign Minister is meeting with the Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Russia, and others, but it is in New York?

    Ms. Saiki: Yes, in New York.

    Q: Which day was it?

    Ms. Saiki: Are you referring to the ministerial meeting between Foreign Minister Gemba and his Pakistani counterpart?

    Q: Yes.

    Ms. Saiki: I understand that meeting took place on 20 September, Tuesday of this week.

    Q: Can I get some more information about the actions that came into discussion? Particularly, what kind of topics came up in the discussion with Foreign Minister of Pakistan?

    Ms. Saiki: Thank you very much for that question.

    First of all, Foreign Minister Gemba at the outset of the meeting expressed his sincere gratitude to the Foreign Minister of Pakistan for all the assistance and help extended by Pakistan after the March 11 disaster. Furthermore, Foreign Minister Gemba referred to the decision on the part of the Japanese government to assist the people of Pakistan in response to the flood disaster. In fact on 9 September, 450,000 US dollars (equivalent) emergency aid was decided to be provided to Pakistan, in addition to which, on 20 September, exactly the same date of the meeting of the two Foreign Ministers, the Japanese government additionally decided emergency assistance to Pakistan to the amount of 10 million US dollars.

    The Foreign Minister of Pakistan expressed his gratitude to Japan and the Japanese people for the help and the assistance extended so far including Japan’s organizing the Pakistan Donors Conference that took place in Tokyo in 2009 and some other international efforts and contributions initiated by Japan.

    The second topic that they discussed was about measures against terrorism. Foreign Minister Gemba stated that he had been astonished and indignant at the news about the assassination of Mr. Rabbani and despite this tragedy Japan is going to redouble its effort and assistance towards the peace and stability of Afghanistan. In response to the statement made by Foreign Minister Gemba, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan stated that peace and stability in Pakistan and peace and stability in Afghanistan are closely interrelated.

    Furthermore, Foreign Minister Gemba expressed his intention and wishes to develop and further elaborate the bilateral relationship between Japan and Pakistan toward a more comprehensive partnership on the basis of the very good results produced on the occasion of the visit of President Asif Ali Zardari to Japan February of this year.

    So that is the essence of the meeting of the two Foreign Ministers taking place on 20 September in New York.

  8. Question concerning Yemen

    9. Q: My second question is about the situation in Yemen. Is Japan having discussions about the Middle East and Yemen, if yes, what kind of meeting are they holding about the Yemen government?

    Ms. Saiki: Thank you for the question.

    For instance, on 20 September in New York there was a meeting amongst the Foreign Ministers of the Group of 8 as a follow-up meeting on the Deauville Partnership agreed upon by the leaders of the eight countries. While Yemen is not a so-called partnership country of the Deauville Partnership, Foreign Minister Gemba and his counterparts in the other seven countries reaffirmed the importance of the strengthening rule of law, democracy and governance, behind of which, of course, there are issues relating to economic prosperity and economic integration in the region. Consequently, Foreign Minister Gemba and the other Ministers of the seven countries agreed that the international community, including the Group of 8, will trust the intention, will, and self-help of the peoples in the Mid-East and consistently support those movements towards democracy in the region.

  9. Question concerning Japanese students studying abroad

    10. Q: I saw somewhere that Japanese students going to the United States are decreasing; what are some of the reasons that this is happening—maybe financial or political reasons?

    Ms. Saiki: Yes, let me help you try to figure out what this is about.

    During the meeting between Foreign Minister Gemba and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Foreign Minister Gemba expressed his concern over the declining number of Japanese students going to the United States to study and specifically expressed his intention to undertake the promotion of youth exchanges, to which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her agreement. So that is the reference which you wanted to raise a question about. Let me try to answer your question as to why the number of Japanese young students going to the United States to study has been decreasing.

    I can think of several reasons. The first could be financial limitations since Japan and the international society have been suffering from recession for a long time. That a once recovering economy might slip into another recession is a risk we are afraid of. Given this economic situation, ordinary Japanese families and young students may have restraints in terms of financial resources to go to foreign countries, including the United States, to study.

    The second reason, I could think of, is the inward looking inclination or an introverted mindset on the part of Japanese young people. Although many Japanese are still interested in world affairs, art, culture, and businesses overseas, relatively speaking, compared to twenty years ago or thirty years ago, the Japanese people have become more introverted. That is another reason I might be able to offer you.

    I could add on some more, but actually these are just my personal understanding. I should stop here.

  10. Question concerning appreciation of the yen

    11. Q: Maybe the last question.

    Ms. Saiki: Please as many questions as you like.

    Q: This is about the declining yen to the dollar—is it a problem of one country or another responsible for making these exchange rates or is there some other power affecting these exchange rates?

    Ms. Saiki: Thank you for the question.

    As for the exchange rate, you said depreciating or declining yen. But rather high appreciation of the yen vis-à-vis the US dollar has been the problem which has caused serious damage to Japanese companies, in particular, exporting companies. The reason why the Japanese yen has appreciated so much against the US dollar is, in my view, first of all relatively speaking, buyers in the currency exchange market believe the Japanese economy is more stable and more trustworthy than that of the United States or European countries. As you know, Europe has been suffering from a debt crisis and the United States is also suffering from a huge budget deficit. So in the eyes of traders in the exchange market, relatively speaking, the attraction of the Japanese yen is strong. That is the reason behind the high appreciation of the yen, in my view.

    Q: Thank you very much.

    Ms. Saiki: Thank you. Have you exhausted your questions?

    Q: Yes.

    Ms. Saiki: Very good.

    So I think this concludes today’s conference. Thank you very much for coming and I’ll be seeing you next week as well.

Back to Index