Press Conferences

Ukai, TV Tokyo: It is being reported that Mr. Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Mr. François Hollande, President of the French Republic, met and shared the view that they will collaborate in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria. In your view, will this meeting contribute to stabilizing the situation in Syria?

Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs: First, I strongly feel that in the fight against terrorism, the solidarity of the relevant countries is important. That being the case, I believe we should welcome close communication between the relevant countries, such as the Russia-France Summit Meeting you referred to and the United States-France Summit Meeting that took place prior to that.

Optimism is certainly not warranted and it is also difficult to forecast the future, but it would be desirable for the relevant countries to continue to communicate closely and show solidarity. The Government of Japan will also closely coordinate with the relevant countries and implement counter-terrorism measures accordingly.

Ukai, TV Tokyo: My question concerns Mr. Nyan Win of the NLD, Myanmar, with whom you will be meeting following this press conference. What sorts of things will you discuss at the meeting, and what sort of relationship does the Government of Japan intend to forge with Myanmar’s new administration in the future?

Minister Kishida: Mr. Nyan Win, Spokesman of Myanmar’s NLD, will visit Japan at the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from November 27 until December 3. This invitation is aimed at further advancing Japan’s traditional friendly and cooperative relationship with Myanmar through strengthening relations with the NLD, which won the recent general election and is led by Chairperson Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi. I have personally held meetings with Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi twice since I became Minister for Foreign Affairs. The Government of Japan expects that dialogues towards launching a new administration in Myanmar will progress, and under a stable administration, Myanmar will make further advances with its democratization and various reforms. Japan will continue to support Myanmar’s development and stability.

Fukai, TBS: My question concerns the matter of the visit to Japan by the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression. Following the request for a postponement of his visit, Mr. David Kaye has said that he has the impression that the current Japan administration is not as open as the past administrations. He has revealed that he was approached about rescheduling his visit to Japan to next year, in the fall or later. Is the Government considering withdrawing this postponement request?

Minister Kishida: In regard to the postponement, as I believe I have answered before, the date that was initially scheduled overlapped with the timing of the Government’s drafting of the budget. We therefore requested that the visit be rescheduled to prepare thoroughly for receiving the Special Rapporteur. That is the situation. We will continue to re-coordinate to arrange a date that is convenient for both sides. The Government requested that the date be rescheduled due to these circumstances, and we will continue to offer our cooperation.

Fukai, TBS: Does that mean the visit will not take place in fall or later next year?

Minister Kishida: I have not heard any specific timing is proposed regarding the rescheduled date. We will continue our coordination efforts.

Watanabe, NHK: My question is from the viewpoint of counter-terrorism measures. I understand that the Japanese Government is leaning towards launching the organization to collect intelligence on international terrorism ahead of schedule. Could you please explain what kinds of counter-terrorism measures will be implemented, including an overview of the organization in your explanation, such as where it will be positioned within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and what specific activities it will carry out?

Minister Kishida: With regard to the Counter Terrorism Unit - Japan, the unit will be established to collect information on international terrorism under an “All-Japan” framework to work on international counter-terrorism measures so that we will be able to prevent international terrorist attacks or to deal effectively with an attack should one occur. Advancing such counter-terrorism measures requires cooperation with the international community and organizations of various countries. In addition, it is absolutely essential that we strengthen and fully utilize our network of embassies and consulates abroad, and moreover ensure coordination with the various types of foreign policies. Therefore the new unit will be positioned within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At the same time, the new unit is to be composed not only of personnel from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who are well versed in the situations in various countries and in languages, but also suitable personnel from other relevant ministries and agencies who have expertise in international counter-terrorism measures, so that we can gather and proceed with the full capabilities of the Government as a whole. As the Minister for Foreign Affairs who manages those staff, I will coordinate closely with the Prime Minister’s Office, lead the new unit with a great sense of responsibility, and work on measures against the international terrorism.

Watanabe, NHK: What is the time frame for its launch?

Minister Kishida: I understand the plan is to launch it in early December.

Watanabe, NHK: I imagine that various coordination must be made to push forward its launch from next year. What issues in the future will you be paying particular attention to? Also, in terms of pushing forward its launch, do you think there will be any issues for the coordination with the other ministries and agencies? What is your thinking on these sorts of issues?

Minister Kishida: With regard to moving up the launch, absolutely nothing has changed in terms of the importance of its content. Taking into account the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, I think there can be no doubt about the importance of such a unit in conjunction with strengthening our preparedness including improving security at diplomatic missions and Japanese schools abroad. We therefore wish to advance its launch and, in any case, of course it must be of a robust content.