YOUR VISIT TO JAPAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L TOKYO 004962 SIPDIS SIPDIS TO SCIENCE ADVISOR TO THE PRESIDENT MARBURGER FROM CHARGE D'AFFAIRES DONOVAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/29/2016 TAGS: SENV TRGY TSPL JA SUBJECT: YOUR VISIT TO JAPAN Classified By: CDA JOE DONOVAN, reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Your visit to Japan comes at an excellent time in U.S.-Japan relations. Our cooperative scientific relationship with Japan is one of the broadest and deepest in the world. Your attendance at the STS Forum and meetings in Kyoto will assist us to move forward on several specific actions. One particular area where we want to move beyond Japan's current focus on simply participating in meetings is on counter-terrorism. We also need to assure Japan that we will continue to keep our commitments on a number of joint programs. End Summary. ¶2. (C) By almost all measures, U.S.-Japan relations are the strongest in decades. Our own polling shows public support for the alliance reaching an unprecedented 80 percent. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's commitment to the relationship and his personal friendship with the President have contributed to this positive trend. The fundamental strength of the relationship, however, rests on a broader set of shared interests and values. The debate a decade ago over choosing between America and Asia is effectively over. Japanese elites, and a growing segment of the public, understand that Japan's long-term interests are best served by a close partnership with the United States. This will be the starting point for the next Prime Minister. ¶3. (C) The Science and Technology in Society Forum (STS) will meet in its third session in Kyoto from September 10 to 12. The Forum is the brainchild of Diet member and former Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy Koji Omi. Its intended purpose is to bring together scholars, researchers, policymakers, businessmen and media leaders from all over the world to meet and discuss science and technology issues in the 21st century. Omi,s view is that science is too important to be left to scientists alone, and that others who understand the political, economic and social consequences of scientific progress should spend more time thinking about and acting on the consequences. The first two sessions of the Forum attracted very distinguished scientists from more than 60 countries around the world, but the political, economic and media turnout has been less impressive. Despite PM Koizumi,s appearance at both sessions (last year,s on Japanese election day no less), Omi,s goal to make STS &the Davos of Science8 is still more of a goal than a reality. ¶4. (C) To the extent that the STS sessions have a general theme, it is about how science can help us achieve sustainable development, especially in the developing world. This year,s theme will be how to deploy science and technology for the benefit of humankind while guarding against the worst risks. Specific topics will range widely, from nanotechnology to scientific literacy and genomics to the role of women in science. Given the venue, you will face the usual questions about the U.S. decision not to embrace the Kyoto protocol, even though there are rumors that Japan will not meet its Kyoto targets. But this will be a sidebar rather than a theme of your discussions. ¶5. (C) There are a number of bilateral issues on which we hope to make progress with our Japanese hosts. In the area of counter terrorism, we established the Safe and Secure Society Initiative several years ago. Over the past 18 months, work under the initiative has been disappointing. There has been little follow-up to meetings. Areas for cooperation have been difficult to find. Now the Japanese have established an office dedicated to working on this initiative. A meeting is scheduled for October and good progress has been made on an ambitious agenda. In your meetings, you should encourage your Japanese counterparts to continue working to find areas of fruitful cooperation. Nuclear security and safety is another area of cooperation where we have made significant progress, but where more needs to be done. In consultation with the NRC and others, Japan has implemented a Design Basis Threat to assess where vulnerabilities exist at its nuclear facilities. It has carried out one force on force exercise simulating an attack on a nuclear plant. It needs to continue this work and improve its exercises so that they are more realistic. ¶6. (SBU) Finally, there are many areas where we are continuing to work together bilaterally and multilaterally. The most significant are the Asian Pacific Partnership for Clean Development and Environment (APP),and the International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza (IPAPI),where Japan has played a key role. We have important collaboration on space issues, and we work multilaterally on carbon sequestration, methane capture and re-use, hydrogen fuel cell development and other scientific and environmental matters. The Japanese will look to you for continued commitement to pursue these efforts. DONOVAN