UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 11 TOKYO 001977

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR E, P, EB, EAP/J, EAP/P, EAP/PD, PA
WHITE HOUSE/NSC/NEC; JUSTICE FOR STU CHEMTOB IN ANTI-TRUST
DIVISION; TREASURY/OASIA/IMI/JAPAN; DEPT PASS USTR/PUBLIC AFFAIRS
OFFICE; SECDEF FOR JCS-J-5/JAPAN,
DASD/ISA/EAPR/JAPAN; DEPT PASS ELECTRONICALLY TO USDA
FAS/ITP FOR SCHROETER; PACOM HONOLULU FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
ADVISOR; CINCPAC FLT/PA/ COMNAVFORJAPAN/PA.

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA
SUBJECT: DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 04/12/06-1

INDEX:

(1) Poll on Koizumi cabinet, political parties, DPJ President
Ozawa

(2) Close-up 2006: Abductee Megumi Yokota's husband identified;
Whether Japan-ROK cooperation is possible remains an open
question

(3) Japan, China, ROK bustling about trying to bring about US-
DPRK dialogue that they view as key to resumption of six-party
talks

(4) Defense Agency, Nago City differ on airstrip length; Nago
insists on 1,500 meters

(5) Futenma relocation plan: Government has to pay high price for
prioritizing talks with US over local communities

(6) Probing the Futenma relocation agreement: Behind-the-scenes
spadework conducted for X-shaped plan; Cabinet ministers
pretended to allow only minor changes; Giving in to local
request, government settled on V-shaped plan

(7) Okinawa in dilemma over Futenma relocation; Government eyes
final report later this month, hoping that agreement reached by
affected municipalities will help soften Inamine's stance

ARTICLES:

(1) Poll on Koizumi cabinet, political parties, DPJ President
Ozawa

YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full)
April 11, 2006

Questions & Answers
(Figures shown in percentage. Parentheses denote the results of a
survey conducted in March.)

Q: Do you support the Koizumi cabinet?

Yes 56.0 (54.9)
No 35.5 (35.9)
Other answers (O/A) 2.3 (3.0)
No answer (N/A) 6.2 (6.2)

Q: Which political party do you support?

Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) 42.8 (42.3)
Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ or Minshuto) 14.0 (11.1)
New Komeito (NK) 2.2 (3.0)
Japanese Communist Party (JCP) 1.5 (1.3)
Social Democratic Party (SDP or Shaminto) 1.0 (1.9)
People's New Party (PNP or Kokumin Shinto) 0.1 (0.2)
New Party Nippon (NPN or Shinto Nippon) 0.2 (0.1)
Other political parties --- (0.1)
None 36.9 (39.2)
N/A 1.2 (0.8)

Q: The DPJ elected Ichiro Ozawa as its new leader. Do you have
expectations for him?


TOKYO 00001977 002 OF 011


Yes 32.1
Yes to a certain degree 24.2
No to a certain degree 17.1
No 22.4
N/A 4.2

Q: (Only for those who answered "yes" to the foregoing question)
Why? Pick as many reasons as you like from among those listed
below, if any.

He has leadership ability 28.0
He's a man of action 28.0
His political ideal is clear-cut 18.4
He's a policy expert 13.5
He's strong in debate 9.6
He's trustworthy 6.3
He's rich in political experience 57.5
He can stand up to Prime Minister Koizumi 31.8
O/A+N/A 2.3

Q: Do you think new DPJ President Ozawa can turn around his
party?

Yes 17.0
Yes to a certain degree 33.0
No to a certain degree 20.9
No 22.3
N/A 6.8

Q: Do you think new DPJ President Ozawa will be a threat to the
LDP?

Yes 24.0
Yes to a certain degree 28.0
No to a certain degree 21.6
No 21.4
N/A 5.0

Q: Do you think the DPJ is competent enough to take office?

Yes 30.1
No 61.2
N/A 8.7

Polling methodology
Date of survey: April 8-9.
Subjects of survey: 3,000 persons chosen from among all eligible
voters throughout the country (at 250 locations on a stratified
two-stage random sampling basis).
Method of implementation: Door-to-door visits for face-to-face
interviews.
Number of valid respondents: 1,823 persons (60.8%).
Breakdown of respondents: Male-48%, female-52%.

(2) Close-up 2006: Abductee Megumi Yokota's husband identified;
Whether Japan-ROK cooperation is possible remains an open
question

TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Slightly abridged)
April 12, 2006

By Akiko Horiyama, Seoul


TOKYO 00001977 003 OF 011


The Japanese government yesterday unveiled the results of DNA
testing showing that the husband of Megumi Yokota, who was
abducted by North Korea, is most likely Kim Young Nam, a South
Korean man also abducted by North Korea. The test results were
released to coincide with a high-level North Korean official's
visit to Tokyo. Behind this was Japan's calculation aimed at
boosting international pressure on North Korea together with
South Korea, which is also in the position of victim like Japan.
The South Korean government, however, does not want its range of
its policy options toward North Korea narrowed by the abduction
issue. Whether Seoul will respond to Tokyo's call for cooperation
is a delicate question.

Seoul concerned about strained relations with Pyongyang

"His being the father of Hye Gyong (the daughter of Megumi
Yokota) means he is related to Megumi's parents. What I want to
do first is to arrange an occasion for Hye Gyong's grandparents
to meet," said Choi Sung Yong, president of South Korea's Family
Assembly Abducted to North Korea.

After persuading the family members of five South Korean men
allegedly abducted to North Korea, including Kim Young Nam, to
cooperate on DNA testing, Choi called on the Japanese and South
Korean governments to conduct DNA analysis. Bolstered by the
outcome of the DNA testing, he expects progress on the process of
rescuing victims. But Kim Young Nam's blood sister, Kim Young
Cha, 48, gave this skeptical comment: "I don't think North Korea
will admit to the abduction. I wonder whether the South Korean
government, which until now has been unwilling to take action,
will move to negotiate with North Korea, taking a risk that it
might bring strains to North-South relations."

The South Korean government has assumed a wait-and-see attitude
after releasing a statement that it would verify the facts.
Apparently, it does not want to worsen North-South relations. In
addition, it does not want to be fettered by the abduction issue
at the negotiating table of the six-party talks like Japan.
Seoul's concern is that if it were to be put in the same
situation as Japan is, it would be forced to narrow (its policy
options in the area of diplomacy) and thereby weaken its
bargaining ability, according to a senior official of the South
Korean Foreign Affairs & Trade Ministry.

South Korea has recognized 485 South Koreans as abductees. Of
them, 434 were fishermen. The South Korean government has
regarded them, as well as former South Korean soldiers who were
held as prisoners during the Korean War (1950-1953) and have not
returned home (estimated to be over 500), as special separated
families. It also has asked North Korea via the family reunion
project run by the Red Cross societies of South and North Korea
to arrange meetings with those soldiers or investigate into their
whereabouts.

But North Korea has never budged from its official position that
there are neither former South Korean soldiers held as prisoners
of war nor are there South Korean abductees, and it has said that
it can instead investigate into missing people. So far, only a
dozen cases of family reunions between South Korean abductees and
their family members have been realized in the name of reunions
of separated families. The abductees' return to South Korea has
not been realized yet.


TOKYO 00001977 004 OF 011


Faced with sharp criticism from abduction victims' organizations,
Unification Minister Lee Jong Seok stated in February: "I'll
strive to bring abductees back to our country." But a senior
Unification Ministry official opined that whether the South
Korean delegate will bring up the abduction issue in the upcoming
ministerial discourse "remains an open question." There is no
knowing what will happen then.

DNA analysis released, timed with Vice Minister Kim's Japan visit

By Takuji Nakata

"It has been made clear that the abduction issue is an
international issue. Japan and South Korea will work in close
cooperation to resolve the issue down the road." This remark came
from Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe at a press briefing
yesterday, in which he unveiled the results of DNA tests.

Kim Young Nam has already been known as a (South Korean)
abductee, but "It is a more tragic thing to have married one
abductee to another after having abducted them from different
countries," a government source pointed out. The Japanese
government wants to build an international coalition against
North Korea in calling international attention to the
humanitarian issues related to North Korea. By doing so, it would
like to check the South Korean government, which tends to take a
markedly soft attitude toward the North. Tokyo intends to urge
Seoul to line up with Japan and the United States, which have
both taken a tough-line on North Korea, including their response
to Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. Japan will provide South Korea
with Hye Gyong's blood to help Seoul to conduct an independent
DNA test on Kim Young Nam.

Considering the abduction issue as a top priority issue, the
government attended the Japan-North Korea Comprehensive and
Parallel Talks held in February, but the talks ended without any
progress. The next step the government will take is to put more
pressure on North Korea to give a true account of the abduction
of Megumi, including whether Megumi's husband Kim Chol Jun, who
North Korea says works at a special agency, is Kim Young Nam.

The government already knew the general picture of the results of
DNA tests in mid-March, but it delayed the release of the results
until yesterday, when North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye
Gwan was in Japan.

In that regard, Abe told a press conference, "The results
happened to be released today," but he emphasized at the same
time: "It was very good timing, because we were able to convey
this fact directly to Mr. Kim Kye Gwan and urge him to resolve
the issue. We were able to reveal our strong will to him."

(3) Japan, China, ROK bustling about trying to bring about US-
DPRK dialogue that they view as key to resumption of six-party
talks

NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Slightly abridged)
April 11, 2006

Japan, China, and South Korea are all seeking to bring about an
early resumption of the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear
ambitions. They yesterday were seen trying to set the stage for
the United States and North Korea to have contact. On the other

TOKYO 00001977 005 OF 011


hand, during three days of talks between Japan and North Korea
over such issues as Japanese abductees, Japan failed to bridge
the gap with the North. Japan and South Korea held consultations
with the United States together, while China made contact twice
with North Korea. The key to breaking the stalemate apparently
lies in whether direct contact will take place between the US and
North Korea, both of which are in confrontation over financial
sanctions imposed by the US on the North.

Japan-North Korea

Japan ranked first in terms of the total length of meetings with
a high-level North Korean official who arrived in Japan on April

7. It spent a total of 5 hours and 40 minutes for three days of
talks with that official.

Emerging from Japan-North Korea talks yesterday, Kenichiro Sasae,
chief of Japan's Foreign Ministry Asian and Oceanian Affairs
Bureau, remarked: "We brought up the abduction issue, but we
focused our attention on the six-party talks." Japan did so
thinking that progress on the nuclear issue would help the
security of Japan and the abduction issue to advance.

Meanwhile, Japan-North Korea talks would have been a good
opportunity for North Korea to underscore its dialogue line to
the international audience. Both sides enjoyed the benefits of
the talks, but their talks got them nowhere.

Japan-US-South Korea

During a meeting last night, Japan, the US, and South Korea
looked for ways to bring North Korea back to six-party talks.
After the meeting, US Assistant Secretary of State Hill gave this
account: "I had a very good discussion with Japan and South
Korea."
But the Bush administration and the Roh Moo Hyun administration
are far apart over North Korea policy. Japan, the US, and South
Korea can join hands to call on North Korea to abandon its
nuclear programs and return to the six-party talks at an early
date. But, Hill stressed, "The point is that North Korea needs to
make clear its willingness to take part in the talks," indicating
his intention to pressure the North to return to six-party talks
unconditionally. Meanwhile, South Korea's chief negotiator, Chun
Young Woo, director in charge of the Korean Peninsula peace
talks, insisted on concessions from the US, noting: "All members
need to be flexible."

China-North Korea

North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan late yesterday
reiterated that "financial sanctions" stood in the way of the
efforts to resume the six-party talks and revealed to the press
that he sounded out Hill about holding bilateral talks between
North Korea and the US. North Korea's diplomatic goal in the
short run is to get the financial sanctions removed and in the
medium- to long-term to keep the Kim Jong Il regime in place. The
North views the US as the only negotiating partner from which
Pyongyang can expect some results in both areas.

Paying close attention to North Korea, Vice Foreign Minister Wu
Dawei of China, the host nation of the six-party talks, yesterday
indicated his willingness to take part in talks with North Korea
at anytime, while he was bustling about trying to realize US-

TOKYO 00001977 006 OF 011


North Korea dialogue by arranging an individual meeting this
morning.

"We can expect a certain extent of change (in North Korea's
attitude)." Making this remark in one negotiation and another
with his counterparts from other nations, Wu revealed his
enthusiasm about realizing a one-on-one meeting between the US
and North Korea. Behind this move seems to be his hope of scoring
points ahead of President Hu Jintao's planned visit to the US
scheduled for late this month. The time left for him to do so is
limited, because Hill is set to leave Japan as early as tomorrow.

(4) Defense Agency, Nago City differ on airstrip length; Nago
insists on 1,500 meters

RYUKYU SHIMPO (Page 1) (Full)
April 12, 2006

The Defense Agency and the municipal government of Nago City (in
Okinawa Prefecture) have now concurred on a remodified plan to
lay down a V-shaped pair of airstrips on an alternative facility
to be built in a coastal area of Camp Schwab for the US Marine
Corps' Futenma Air Station. However, the agency and the city were
found yesterday to have differed on the length of the newly
planned runways. The agency has plans to build 1,500-meter
runways, which are as long as the one previously planned to be
built in the camp's coastal area (across the cape of Henoko in
the city of Nago) but which will have an overall length of 1,800
meters with buffer zones, according to Defense Agency
Administrative Deputy Director General Takemasa Moriya's April 10
press remarks. Meanwhile, Nago City's Deputy Mayor Bunshin
Suematsu said yesterday afternoon that the agency and the city
have yet to concur on anything about the tarmacs, including how
long and what scale.

"In our consultations (that led to the basic agreement), we
didn't talk about any figures, such as the length and size of the
runways," Suematsu said. He also said: "They didn't tell us why
they need that long runways. We'll need to discuss specifics from
now on." Nago City has asked the Defense Agency to shorten the
runways alone to 1,300 meters with an overall length of up to
1,500 meters.

In the meantime, Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga
has declared that the runways would have an overall length of
1,800 meters. "The runway's length was set at 1,800 meters in the
interim report released last fall," Nukaga stated before the
House of Councillors Foreign and Defense Affairs Committee in its
meeting held yesterday.

Nukaga also stated, "When it comes to how large the runways will
be, we've yet to determine anything in detail." The defense chief
went on, "We will talk well with the city of Nago about details."
This can be taken as indicating that the Defense Agency and Nago
City will focus on the runways' size in their talks to be held
from now on.

The basic agreement, which was reached in written form on April 7
between the government and Nago City, is an accord on where to
build the replacement facility for Futenma airfield. It has no
mention of the runways' length.

The government is planning to set up a consultative body with

TOKYO 00001977 007 OF 011


local officials on the Futenma replacement facility. However, the
government's view diverges from local requests. This will likely
become a new problem to be resolved.

Nago Mayor Yoshikazu Shimabukuro stressed in a press conference
held on the evening of April 8 that Nago would hold talks with
the government about where to build the runways. The mayor also
referred to the city's proposal to shorten the runways to 1,300
meters. "Basically," he said, "that's our stance." Meanwhile, he
also explained that the government and the city did not talk
about the runways' length whatsoever.

Nago City's Deputy Mayor Suematsu also reiterated the city's
basic way of thinking: "SACO (Japan-US Special Action Committee
on Facilities and Areas in Okinawa) has agreed to set the
runway's length at 1,300 meters. So the runways should not be
longer than that. That's our stance."

(5) Futenma relocation plan: Government has to pay high price for
prioritizing talks with US over local communities

ASAHI (Page 2) (Excerpts)
April 9, 2006

By proposing an unexpected plan to construct two runways in a V-
shape, the government managed to reach agreement with the Nago
and nearby municipal governments on relocating the US Marine
Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture. But Okinawa
Governor Inamine has expressed his opposition to the plan. On US
force realignment plans in base-hosting areas other than Okinawa,
as well, the government has yet to reach agreement with local
communities. Local communities involved in such plans are now
distrustful of the government's stance of prioritizing talks with
the US over negotiations with them.

After meeting with Governor Inamine, Defense Agency (JDA)
Director General Nukaga told reporters yesterday:

"I do not think Governor Inamine will make requests regarding
each specific base problem. He supposedly intends to determine
the prefectural government's response after seeing details set by
Japan and the US for a final report."

Nukaga indicated, though choosing his words, that even if the
governor continued to oppose the Cape Henoko plan, the government
would not allow him to obstruct the process of formation of a
final report by the Japanese and US governments.

The government's attention is focused on "a final report." Japan
and the US missed a March 31 deadline for settling details of
realigning US forces in Japan. The government is eager to strike
a deal for a final report by breaking the impasse on the issue of
Japan bearing part of the cost of transferring US Marines from
Okinawa to Guam during the planned talks with the US on April 13-

14.

However, the Okinawa governor has the right to approve or deny
land reclamation projects in public waters as "an ace in the
hole." Without the agreement of the governor, it will be
impossible for the government to start construction work.

The construction work at Cape Henoko would finally begin after
three years of environmental impact assessment. Inamine's term of

TOKYO 00001977 008 OF 011


office expires in December. But an informed source said: "Should
Inamine or anyone who assumes the same stance as Inamine be
elected in the upcoming gubernatorial election, the relocation
plan will not move forward."

In the government and the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), some
officials have suggested the government should enact a law that
would transfer authority on land reclamation from the prefectural
governor to the central government. A senior LDP member said:
"Mr. Inamine does not need to change his stance. We will take
appropriate measures." But such a high-handed approach would
inevitably evoke strong reactions from the Okinawa government.

In a referendum in March, a majority of residents said "no" to
the planned relocation of carrier-based aircraft to the US Marine
Corps' Iwakuni Air Base in Yamaguchi Prefecture. As seen from
this, the government is having difficulty persuading base-hosting
local communities to go along with realignment proposals.

(6) Probing the Futenma relocation agreement: Behind-the-scenes
spadework conducted for X-shaped plan; Cabinet ministers
pretended to allow only minor changes; Giving in to local
request, government settled on V-shaped plan

TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full)
April 11, 2006

The subject of relocating the US Marine Corps' Futenma Air
Station has taken a large step forward with an agreement reached
between the government and Nago to build two runways in a V-shape
on the coastline of Camp Schwab. Defense Agency Director General
Fukushiro Nukaga had scurried around in order to come up with an
X-shaped plan, known as the "Nukaga magic" by persons concerned.
The plan required meticulous coordination behind the scenes.

Nukaga secretly met with Chief Cabinet Shinzo Abe and Foreign
Minister Taro Aso in Tokyo March 13, and the defense chief
unveiled the X-shaped plan for the first time. Abe and Aso were
asked by Nukaga to keep the plan to themselves.

Japan and the United States reached an agreement last year.
Shimabukuro opposed it, demanding the planned airfield be removed
further offshore. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi refused to
make any changes to the government's plan, but the three cabinet
ministers kept studying compromise plans.

Koizumi thought that meeting with protests by anti-base members,
construction work would not start unless the new facilities were
built on an existing US base. Abe successfully convinced Koizumi,
telling him that there would be no construction work without
local consent. This prompted Koizumi to order Abe to work things
out with the Defense Agency. As a result, Nukaga, Abe, and Aso
held talks March 13.

Having served as deputy chief cabinet secretary in the Hashimoto
and Obuchi cabinets, Nukaga had strong personal ties to Okinawa.
Nukaga attempted to determine Nago's bottom line behind the
scenes. He eventually learned from an influential individual in
Nago that steps like moving the runway would be insufficient to
convince the city.

This forced Nukaga to resort to the X-shaped plan, which was the
most dramatic plan of all the revision schemes secretly worked

TOKYO 00001977 009 OF 011


out by the Defense Facilities Administration Agency since
February. The X-format plan would satisfy the government's desire
for ground-based construction work and Nago's call for avoiding
the residential areas. The option would also be able to generate
a far greater impact than just moving the runway.

An additional runway was certain to prolong the construction
period and boost the construction cost. As a result, talks were
held March 16 among Nukaga, Abe, Aso, Okinawa Affairs Minister
Yuriko Koike, and Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki. Nukaga then
called on Koizumi at his official residence on March 21, a
Japanese holiday, to obtain his informal consent.

The government still could not afford to show its cards to Nago.
Koizumi and Nukaga continued to pretend that the government would
only allow minor changes by saying to reporters, "We don't mean
to be so stubborn to refuse moving it even 1 centimeter."

Negotiations between Nukaga and Shimabukuro began on the night of
March 21. After then, the defense chief held five rounds of talks
with Shimabukuro, which gave him confidence to bring the Futenma
issue to a settlement.

Abe also met with US Ambassador to Japan Thomas Schieffer on
March 28 to obtain his understanding about constructing an
additional runway. Late that night, Abe assembled the five
cabinet ministers at a Tokyo hotel. Nukaga searched for the
timing to propose the two-runway plan to Nago.

Nukaga met with Shimabukuro for the sixth time on April 7. Their
talks lasted four and a half hours. Shimabukuro asked to move the
southern runway a little southward in order to avoid an impact on
the eastern residential area. Giving in to Shimabukuro's request,
Nukaga eventually agreed to change the X-shaped runway plan into
a V-shaped plan.

(7) Okinawa in dilemma over Futenma relocation; Government eyes
final report later this month, hoping that agreement reached by
affected municipalities will help soften Inamine's stance

YOMIURI (Page 3) (Abridged)
April 9, 2006

Talks on April 8 between the central government and Okinawa on
the relocation of the US Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station ended
without reaching an agreement. But because Okinawa Gov. Keiichi
Inamine showed a certain level of understanding of a plan to
build two runways in a V-shape, the government thinks it is
possible for Tokyo and Washington to produce their US force
realignment final report later this month and obtain Okinawa's
consent.

Koizumi-Inamine talks envisaged

On April 8, Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga held
talks with Okinawa Gov. Keiichi Inamine for about three hours. In
the final hour, five local chiefs, including Nago Mayor Yoshikazu
Shimabukuro, joined them. The Defense Agency envisaged talks
between Prime Minister Koizumi and Gov. Inamine for settling the
issue. The Defense Agency allowed Shimabukuro and other local
chiefs to attend its talks with Inamine in a bid to soften the
governor's stance by underlining the fact that the concerned
municipalities, who have more direct interests in the plan,

TOKYO 00001977 010 OF 011


reached a basic agreement.

Shimabukuro sat across from Inamine, who reportedly commented at
one point, "I'm not opposed to the government plan." But the
talks broke off in the end, and the envisaged Koizumi-Inamine
talks did not occur.

Inamine in agony

In November 1999, the year after his election, Inamine announced
his acceptance of the government's original Henoko offshore plan
on the condition that the envisaged airport be used as a military-
civilian airport that the US military could use for 15 years.
Inamine rejected the Nukaga-Shimabukuro agreement because such an
announcement made by himself. He cannot accept the revised plan
so easily that would give no access to civilian planes and
carries no time limit. The gubernatorial election coming up in
November makes it more difficult for Inamine to change his policy
direction.

But the affected municipalities have strong expectations for the
financial assistance from the government.

Governor's support essential

The central government intends to make every possible effort to
win Inamine's support on the issue, because the governor has the
authority to approve projects using public waters.

The government stressed the advantage of the plan agreed last
week, saying the original plan would require more than 10 years
to complete, whereas the new plan will take only about eight
years. Yet unless Inamine endorses the reclamation project, the
plan could end up as pie in the sky.

Nukaga said: "Governor Inamine plans to make his decision after
Japan and the US finalize their report on the realignment of US
forces in Japan." The government intends to compile the final
report later this month following the April 13-14 Japan-US senior-
working-level talks of defense and foreign affairs officials. The
government also intends to win Inamine's support by clearly
spelling out ways to reduce Okinawa's burden in the final report.

But it is not clear whether the government's scenario will go
smoothly, as the two countries have yet to agree on how to share
the cost of relocating US Marines from Okinawa to Guan.

Nukaga's secret X-shaped plan turned into V-shaped plan

The V-shaped plan that won Nago's consent was a product of
concessions made in the four-and-a-half hours of talks April 7
between defense chief Nukaga and Nago Mayor.

Their talks started at 4:00 p.m. On the table was a design to
build two runways in an X-shape. The plan was designed to build
the main runway by slightly turning the direction of the
government-proposed runway counterclockwise and the takeoff-only
sub-runway clockwise. Nukaga reportedly came up with the X-shaped
plan in February to strike a balance between Nago's demand to
remove Henoko, Toyohara, and Abu districts and Ginozason from the
flight path and the government's intention not to move the
facilities offshore.


TOKYO 00001977 011 OF 011


Nukaga did not present his "secret plan" in his talks with
Shimabukuro on March 26 and April 4 out of concern that it would
prompt Nago to pursue opposition for opposition's sake, arming
itself with all the knowledge it can gather. Upon obtaining US
consent, the defense chief used his trump card in his talks with
Shimabukuro at the final phase.

Shimabukuro insisted on Nago's plan to build a single runway
further offshore. Nukaga rebutted, "The X-shaped plan meets the
city's demand to remove residential areas from the flight paths."

Shimabukuro asked for a break. After returning to the negotiation
table, the Nago mayor again pressed Nukaga to move the runway a
little further offshore, citing a residential area in the
Toyohara district. Nukaga refused to make major changes. The V-
shaped plan resulted from their concessions while giving
consideration to the marine habitat in shallow waters and other
factors.

SCHIEFFER