Press Conferences

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida: I am aware that in Thailand on May 22 the National Peace and Order Maintaining Council , headed by Army Commander in Chief Prayuth Chan-OCha, announced it had assumed the full power of the government. Yesterday evening I released a statement expressing regret that this situation had occurred, and stating that the Government of Japan strongly urges those concerned that democracy in Thailand be quickly restored.
In addition, so far there have been no reports of casualties among Japanese people in Thailand, but we intend to pay the closest attention to the safety of Japanese people, including continuing to provide sufficient information and issue timely alerts.
In order to accurately secure a grasp of the local circumstances and make doubly sure that the safety of Japanese people is ensured, a structure is in place at the Prime Minister’s Office for discussing responses with the agencies and ministries concerned on an as-needed basis, with the National Security Secretariat and a Cabinet Secretariat’s situation room playing central roles. Furthermore, yesterday evening a liaison office was also established at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is headed by Southeast and Southwest Asian Affairs Department Director-General Kazuhide Ishikawa. Incidentally, an emergency response headquarters has already been set up at our local embassy as of May 20 and it continues to respond to the situation.

Torinari, Kyodo Press: I would like to ask about next week’s Japan-North Korea Government-level consultations. Keiji Furuya, Minister in charge of the Abduction Issue, released a statement yesterday in which he said that if the North Korea takes forward-looking measures, Japan will not rule out gradually removing the measures it is taking itself. Are the forward-looking measures mentioned in that statement referring to the commencement of a reinvestigation into the so-called abductions issue? Or does this refer to a situation after a reinvestigation has not only begun but has actually made progress? Could you please tell us what this mention of forward-looking measures is referring to?

Minister Kishida: The Japan-North Korea Government-level consultations will be held next week, but at the present point in time, because it is prior to the consultations, I do not think it is appropriate to try to predict what the content of the consultations will be. However, based on the fundamental standpoint of the Government of Japan on this abductions issue, and based as well on previous consultations, we hope that the consultation be a one in which we extract forward-looking measures from North Korea.

Kamide, Freelance: I have basically two questions regarding the right of collective self-defense.
Regrettably I was unable to attend, but at the previous press conference and the one before that you discussed the Guidelines for U.S.-Japan Defense Cooperation and said they will be carefully explained, and in regards to that, based on the present schedule the Guidelines for U.S.-Japan Defense Cooperation will be reviewed under the current constitutional interpretation. Will confirmation of that be made public in some format or other after the work has been done? In other words, it is not inconceivable that if things have more or less come together it could be done in advance, and my first question is whether or not that will occur.
My second point is that you have repeatedly said you will explain the issues carefully to the people and neighboring countries. At the same time, the New Komeito and others are emphasizing that national debate is needed. What shape will that careful explanation take? I understand there are various approaches, such as seeking public comment or holding public hearings, but what do you have in mind as a way of really bringing about the peoples’ discussion? I would like to ask these two questions please.

Minister Kishida: To begin with, regarding the review of the Japan-U.S. Guidelines, an understanding was reached in the Japan-U.S. “2+2” meeting in October last year that the review would be carried out toward the end of this year. Regarding the debate on the legal basis for Japan’s security including the right of collective self-defense, the report by the Advisory Panel on Reconstruction of the Legal Basis for Security was submitted the other day. While the Government is watching the discussions by the ruling parties attentively, those discussions are continuing currently. Consequently, where the review of the Guidelines in itself is concerned, at the present point of time it will be considered on the basis of Japan’s current legal basis and constitutional interpretation.
And concerning your question on it being done in advance, where the discussions themselves on the legal basis including the right of collective self-defense, are concerned, discussions by the government and by the ruling parties have just begun. The outlook is completely unpredictable and no conclusion whatsoever has been reached, so I do not believe the situation allows for doing it in advance or anything else.
Regarding your question about careful discussions and discussions that are easy for the people to understand, where the discussions themselves are concerned the government will hold earnest discussions with the ruling parties, and then following that the government’s policy will be set. I believe that is what will happen from here forward. However, discussion on this issue is already taking place in the Diet, and I think it will be debated in the Diet going forward as well. The discussions in the Diet will take place even after the government’s policy has been set, and if necessary, various specific bills will also be submitted to the Diet. Following that, Diet deliberations will again take place.
Finally, it will be solidly debated in the Diet, which is the representative of the people, and I think this is fundamental when carrying out robust discussions among the people to begin with. I also believe it is important to have the people firmly observe this debate in the Diet, and to deepen their understanding of this problem. Whatever the case may be, I think it is fundamental to undertake discussions carefully in the Diet, which is the representative of the people.

Kamide, Freelance: For example, at the time of the Act on the Protection of Specially Designated Secrets, there were public comment and others. Are you not considering a format such as that, whereby the people are able to take part in the discussions directly in some way? This is being described by some as a so-called major transformation in policy, so do you not envisage such a possibility in regards to this issue?

Minister Kishida: I do not think the government has decided anything specific in that regard at the moment, but from here forward, once the government’s policy is decided, it remains to be seen what will occur in the discussions themselves. I believe we should solidly fulfill our duty to explain to the people based on the content of those discussions, and consider the optimum approach.

Hasegawa, Agence France-Presse: My question concerns the situation in Thailand. In yesterday’s statement, the Government of Japan strongly urged those concerned that democracy in Thailand be quickly restored. But specifically, to whom and in what form is the Government of Japan making this request, and what is its policy with regards to Thailand at the current point in time?

Minister Kishida: The Government of Japan appreciates that this–namely, the future of the country of Thailand and its political system–is something that all the people of Thailand should decide. Within this context, the Government of Japan certainly hopes that the democratic political system is restored in Thailand. Therefore, the essence of this statement was that rather than speaking to someone in Thailand, the Government of Japan expressed its hope that when the people of Thailand decide the future of their country, they restore its democratic political system.

Saito, Kyodo Press: I would like to ask about the visit to Japan of Mr. Naryshkin, Chair of Russia’s State Duma. When you receive Mr. Naryshkin, how will the Government of Japan receive him? For example, who will formerly receive him? Will it be the Prime Minister? And in the context of the Ukraine situation, are you not concerned that Japan’s reception of the Chair will send out the wrong message to the international community?
Excuse me, so I would like to ask two questions. The first is how the Government of Japan will receive him and who you think should formally receive him? That is my first question. Second, under the current situation, are you not concerned that the arrival of the Chairman will send out the wrong message to the international community, particularly to the U.S. and Europe? Could I ask you about these two points?

Minister Kishida: I understand that Mr. Naryshkin is visiting Japan at the beginning of June with the intention of attending the opening ceremony of the Festival of Russian Culture in Japan. But I also understand that the details of his visit, such as with whom he is going to meet, have not yet been decided in any way. So, with regard to the question of whether or not his visit will send out the wrong message or have some effect, I would say that the intention of Mr. Naryshkin’s visit to Japan is to attend the Russian cultural festival being held here. So, I think that we must comprehensively judge his visit from various elements, including his attendance at events of this character.
Whatever the case, I believe that Japan should take the utmost care not to send out the wrong message.

Torinari, Kyodo News: My question relates to the previous question about the Japan-North Korea Government-level consultations. I would like to ask you about one more point. With regards to the timing of the lifting of sanctions, Minister in charge of the Abduction Issue Keiji Furuya stated at the press conference yesterday that the last time, the lifting had coincided with the reinvestigation of the abductions, but that this time, we were not currently at that stage. In other words, he indicated that the re-start of the investigation is not the sole condition for the lifting of sanctions. May I understand this to be the policy of the Government of Japan?

Minister Kishida: I do not believe that it is appropriate for me to comment on the content of remarks made by Minister Furuya. However, within the Government, we are constantly examining the best course to take as to what measures should be taken against North Korea. But my understanding is that at the current point in time, no concrete decisions have been made about future policy.
In order to elicit concrete actions from North Korea toward concrete solutions to matters of concerns, Japan has been thoroughly investigating what will be the most effective methods, and so far, our policy has been to adopt the most effective methods. Going forward, I believe we should continue to thoroughly investigate our dealings with North Korea based on this approach.

Watanabe, NHK: My question is related to the upcoming election in Ukraine. It is reported that the number of victims killed in clashes between pro-Russian activists and Ukrainian armed forces has been increasing. The election is to be held this weekend. Could you let us know how and what the Government of Japan considers about the situation where such turmoil occurs before the election?

Minister Kishida: Concerning the Ukrainian presidential election scheduled on May 25, we regard it as a very important election for the future of Ukraine and for the peaceful solution of the current situation. I understand that this presidential election is attracting the world’s attention.
The Government of Japan considers that it should steadily contribute to the peaceful implementation of the election and to ensuring the legitimacy of the election. Therefore, the Government of Japan has already decided to dispatch ten persons to the OSCE election observation mission.
I believe that Japan needs to make a contribution so that the presidential election will be implemented peacefully and successfully.

Fujikawa, TV Asahi: I would like to ask you one more question regarding the relationship with North Korea. While North Korea shows a positive stance of agreeing to hold consultations with Japan, it also continues provocative actions such as artillery fire to the Republic of Korea. What do you think about such two-sided actions by North Korea? Also, I would like to know whether you will discuss such provocative actions in the consultations scheduled early next week.

Minister Kishida: As you have pointed out, according to reports, the North Korea conducted the firing of artillery and then the ROK army responded by firing back. That is what I have learned from reports. Concerning such an incident, I would first like to collect information in coordination with the relevant ministries and agencies as well as relevant countries.
In terms of the Japan-North Korea Government-level consultations, we will make preparations to discuss issues of mutual interests. It is important to request North Korea to refrain from any actions that could intensify tensions in the region. Based on that, we will hold consultations to urge North Korea’s concrete actions for the solution of matters of concern.