DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 01/18/07

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TOKYO 000226 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 01/18/07 INDEX: (1) Futenma relocation: Nago City requests revised plan that could move V-shaped runway as is to offshore location (2) Gov't to increase USFJ host subsidies in 4 stages (3) Japan's risky move to approach NATO; Abe's visit to NATO headquarters first for Japanese prime minister (4) ABE administration: Ruling parties and its members (Part 3): Post-Abe hopefuls in action (5) Editorial: LDP at annual convention appears to be increasingly inward looking (6) Editorial: Prime Minister ABE must aim for a beautiful administration first (7) Scramble for natural resources - Part 9: Oil road runs in desert, given decreasing oil output in China ARTICLES: (1) Futenma relocation: Nago City requests revised plan that could move V-shaped runway as is to offshore location ASAHI (Page 14) (Full) Eve., January 18, 2007 On the issue of relocating the US forces' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, Nago City, the site of the relocation, has drawn up a revised plan that would shift the location of the current plan, Henoko Point, offshore to the southwest. The aim is to move the runway far from the neighboring residential area, thus reducing the sound from the aircraft and giving consideration to safety. The plan, already transmitted to the prefectural government, has reportedly received its consent. On the other hand, the city until now has been calling for a shortening of the length of the runway from the planned 1,800 meters to 1,500 meters, but if the alternate base is moved offshore, the city is thinking of allowing the 1,800-meter runway to be built. A third round of council meetings between the central government and Okinawa on the Futenma relocation is scheduled for Jan. 19. Nago City has adopted a policy course of presenting the plan shifting the location to the offing as its local plan if at the meeting the government does not take a positive stance toward revising the current plan on its own. Regarding the distance for moving the location into the offing, the city was not specific, but it is thinking of seeking a revision that would put the runway in an area where they could still use Hirashima Island for camping and the like after the construction. In addition, under the current plan, the area for land reclamation is a spot in Oura Bay where the water is approximately 30 meters deep. However, if the location is shifted offshore, it would be in shallow waters of less than 10 meters deep, allowing the construction time to be shortened. Nago City reached a basic agreement last year in April with the then Defense Agency on a plan to build a V-shaped runway at Henoko Point. In this agreement, the construction site was basically the Henoko TOKYO 00000226 002 OF 010 Point plan that the Japanese and US governments had agreed to in October 2005. Regarding the city's seeking a revision, a senior city official stressed: "The agreement was a 'basic' one for the sake of the talks with the government. It did not mean that the current plan to locate it at Henoko Point was set. The city until now has always been seeking to push the location as much as possible into the sea." (2) Gov't to increase USFJ host subsidies in 4 stages TOKYO (Page 1) (Full) January 18, 2007 The government yesterday revealed the full text of its draft bill to establish a law for special measures to facilitate the planned realignment of US forces in Japan. The bill features expanding the government's subsidization of municipalities hosting US military bases. According to the bill, the government will subsidize base-hosting municipalities in four stages: 1) accepting the planned realignment of US forces in Japan; 2) setting about an environmental assessment; 3) starting construction work for new facilities; 4) and completing construction work and starting operation. The bill says the government is to pay up to 95% of total costs for public works projects in Okinawa Prefecture. The bill also incorporates a preferential measure allowing base-hosting local governments to issue bonds in a flexible way. The government plans to subsidize localities housing facilities to be newly built for US forces and will also subsidize contiguous municipalities. In addition, neighboring municipalities subsidized for soundproofing under the current law will be included as well. The government will make a cabinet decision on Feb. 9 to adopt the bill for its passage through the Diet in its ordinary session to be called on Feb. 25. The legislation is intended to carry out realignment plans in a steady way. In concrete terms, the government plans to relocate the US Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture, to a coastal area of Camp Schwab in the northern Okinawa city of Nago. Another realignment plan is to redeploy carrier-borne aircraft from Atsugi base in Kanagawa Prefecture to Iwakuni base in Yamaguchi Prefecture. In addition, the government also plans to transfer F-15 fighter jets' training in part from the US Kadena Air Base in Okinawa Prefecture to other bases in mainland prefectures. Some base-hosting local communities will likely oppose the government's planned expansion of its public investment in return for their increased burden of hosting US forces. (3) Japan's risky move to approach NATO; Abe's visit to NATO headquarters first for Japanese prime minister MAINICHI (Page 2) (Slightly abridged) Eve., January 17, 2007 By Tadahiko Mori Last week, when the Defense Agency (JDA) was upgraded to a ministry and the Self-Defense Forces' (SDF) overseas operations were put in the category of "principal duties," Prime Minister SHINZO ABE visited the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels and vowed to boost cooperation (with NATO) on overseas operations. NATO's raison d'etre has changed significantly with the TOKYO 00000226 003 OF 010 end of the Cold War, but it is still the largest and most powerful military organization in the world and can exercise the right to collective self-defense, though Japan is banned from using that right under the Constitution. While asserting that he observes various principles mentioned in the Constitution, ABE became the first Japanese prime minister to visit NATO headquarters. His behavior has given rise to concern among the Japanese public that Japan may lean toward "militarism" without giving an account to the public. Let me explain first about the current state of NATO. In the Cold War days, when the US and the Soviet Union confronted each other, we were taught at school that NATO was a military alliance consisting of the United States and Western European nations to counter the Warsaw Treaty Organization (Warsaw Pact),composed of communist nations. NATO was not something familiar for Japan. Following the collapse of the Cold War, the Warsaw Pact was dissolved in 1991, and when the Soviet Union fell apart, NATO lost its raison d'etre it had had until then. With its survival at stake, NATO transformed itself into a security organization that would extensively cover a broad area from the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. The weight of its operations shifted accordingly from its participation in direct wars over the so-called nuclear issues to its engagement in resolving ethnic disputes or peacekeeping operations. NATO also expanded the purview of its activities, though until then the range of its activities had been limited in areas around its member nations. When an ethnic dispute arose on the Balkan Peninsula, NATO played an active role in addressing the dispute, and when the Kosovo war broke out (in 1999),NATO, despite the lack of a genuine UN resolution, decided to strike a sovereign nation state (the former Yugoslavia). After the 2001 terrorist attacks on the US, NATO sent its troops to Afghanistan and Iraq in the name of peacekeeping activities. In Afghanistan, a country viewed as a battlefield, NATO troops suffered heavy causalities. Since 2005 NATO has provided logistic support for peacekeeping operations in Sudan. No doubt, the 2001 terrorist attacks on the US changed the nature of NATO. For a few years until the occurrence of such attacks on the US, I covered NATO headquarters in Brussels. At the time, one senior NATO officer said to me: "NATO will drop the concept of region in the future. Anything that threatens our member nations will be regarded as the objects of our strikes." Since then, NATO has been steadily following an expansion line. NATO's membership at present is 26, an increase from the 12 in 1949, when NATO was founded. Making the best use of various relations of partnership, NATO has broadened friendly ties with nearby nations. Even Russia joined NATO as a quasi-member in 2002, and has cooperated with NATO in military affairs. Moreover, NATO in its summit meeting held last November in Riga, Latvia, cited Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and Japan by name and called them political partners sharing values on security. NATO, which wants international support for its military operations, basically welcomes the spread of political support worldwide. Japan, meanwhile, wants to step up "military pressure," albeit indirectly, on North Korea and China so as to resolve such issues as the abductions of Japanese by North Korea. NATO in this context could serve as support for Japan. Following Foreign Minister Taro Aso's visit to NATO headquarters last May, even ABE visited it TOKYO 00000226 004 OF 010 recently. Behind this move is perhaps Japan's intention to broaden support for its bid for a permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Nagao Hyodo, professor at Tokyo Keizai University, who has promoted official contacts with NATO since 1998 when he served as ambassador to Belgium, commented: "The globalization of NATO and Tokyo's diplomatic consideration are now in agreement." In the eyes of Japan, the Europe-based NATO appears to be working exclusively for Europe, but what it is actually doing is different. Basically, NATO works in line with instructions given by the US. In fact, immediately after the 2001 terrorist attacks in the US, NATO exercised the right to collective self-defense for the first time at the request of the US. Every member nation of NATO took part in the war on terror in various forms (including political and financial assistance). Japan is not a NATO member, but once Japan and NATO build some kind of cooperative ties, Japan will have to have a hand in NATO's actions, even indirectly. Reacting to Abe's visit to NATO, one senior NATO official praised it: "It was an important step for Japan and NATO to buttress political and military ties in Asia and the Pacific." Prof. Hyodo commented: "Although it's inconceivable for Japan to take part directly in military operations, no doubt NATO will expect Japan to play the role of financial supporter for reconstruction assistance. In a speech at the NATO's board of directors meeting, ABE stated: "It is a historic event and a great pleasure for me to be the first Japanese prime minister to take part in the meeting. . . . Japan and NATO are partners sharing such values as freedom, democracy, and human rights. The Japanese people are no longer hesitant to send the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) abroad if their overseas dispatches are aimed at bringing peace and stability to the international community." I have leaders of East European nations in their speeches at NATO headquarters earnestly seeking to join NATO as "proof of a democratic state." The elation I felt in their speeches was also there in Abe's speech. Abe has previously expressed his strong desire to amend the Constitution, and his visit to NATO may be part of his diplomatic approach on that policy line, but the problem is that he did so even before the procedures for constitutional revision have been put in motion. A diplomatic approach that can be taken as disregarding the Constitution is proceeding before most of the public are aware. If Japan wants to put more pressure on North Korea, it should do so via such political organizations as the UN or the European Union (EU) or by making good use of bilateral relations. Japan's move to breezily rely on a military organization demonstrates Japan's precarious tilt toward the military. Yuichi Hosoya, professor of history of international political science at Keio University, commented: "There is a difference from (former Prime Minister) Koizumi-led diplomacy that focused on the Japan-US alliance, but my worry is that if it goes ahead with this approach without any long-term strategy showing how Japan will be engaged in the international community and with the lack of political will, Japan could be forced to do as it is told by NATO." TOKYO 00000226 005 OF 010 Regarding the upgrade of the JDA to a ministry, a German newspaper, Hamburger Abendblatt, described it as the "end of pacifism," adding, "With the end of the Cold War and at increased requests from its ally the US, Japan is increasingly prodded to show its initiative on international scenes." At a joint press conference with Abe, NATO Secretary General De Hoop Scheffer stated: "How will Japan cooperate with us in the future? Everything is up to Japan's decision. I had a very reassuring discussion with the prime minister regarding reconstruction assistance." Aside from what is the prime minister's real motive, his visit to NATO undoubtedly has made European and US military people harbor great expectations for Japan's action in the future. (4) ABE administration: Ruling parties and its members (Part 3): Post-Abe hopefuls in action NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Abridged) January 18, 2007 The Liberal Democratic Party convention took place yesterday. Once the convention was over, former Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki was surrounded by reporters. Tanigaki delivered a speech in Kyoto, his constituency, on Jan. 15 in which he highlighted the need to search for a setup for creating a middle-of-the-road wing in addition to the right wing, as if to attack Prime Minister SHINZO Abe. Tanigaki also revealed that he had been asked by Foreign Minister Taro Aso to join hands as part of a plan to bring together the three factions that had spun off from the now defunct Miyazawa faction. Tanigaki added, "I told Mr. Aso that such a step was premature." Tanigaki's bold comment is undoubtedly ascribable to the ABE cabinet's plummeting approval rate. Following the resignation of Genichiro Sata as administrative reform minister, political fund scandals involving Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Toshikatsu Matsuoka and other lawmakers have emerged. Tanigaki's revelation of the secret meeting with Aso infuriated the foreign minister. Tanigaki even revealed that Aso had said, "Let me assume (the post of prime minister) first." The dominant view in the capitol district of Nagatacho is that 66-year-old Aso can become prime minister only if ABE resigns early. "The foreign minister is looking ahead," a lawmaker said. Attention is also focused on the activities of Yasuo Fukuda, who gave up running in the LDP presidential race last September. As usual, Fukuda spent a large part of the year-end and New Year holidays at his home in Tokyo. Many think Fukuda is not concerned with the post of prime minister. Fukuda attended New Year's parties in Gunma Prefecture, his home turf, on Jan. 4 and 11 in which he commented, "Even if things are going well now, you must remain vigilant." Late last year, Fukuda also asked cooperation next year of Seishiro Eto, who had spearheaded the campaign to realize a Fukuda administration. On Jan. 3, former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi showed up at the National Theater to view a Kabuki play. He quietly enjoyed the drama in light security. He has been living easy, for instance, often dining with cultural figures. There is a persistent rumor in the capital area of Nagatacho that TOKYO 00000226 006 OF 010 Koizumi may come back to assume the helm of government again. Koizumi has resumed his political activities, attending a meeting in his constituency. "The ruling coalition still holds an overwhelming majority in the Lower House, so the results of the Upper House race will not affect the prime minister in any way," former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori said on Jan. 16 apparently in an effort to check the moves of potential successors to Abe. In the previous LDP presidential race, everyone rallied around Abe. Such vigor no longer exists today. As far as the post of prime minister is concerned, eagerness and demand do not match. Asked by a reporter about the moves of Tanigaki and others, ABE said: "The LDP has many promising members. It's good that they are all acting vigorously." (5) Editorial: LDP at annual convention appears to be increasingly inward looking TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 5) (Full) January 18, 2007 There were only two guest speakers at the Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) annual convention yesterday. The speakers were the head of its coalition partner, a party that the LDP ask for election support, and the leader of a business organization, on which the party calls for political donations. Is this an indication of the LDP taking on an inward-looking attitude? If the LDP is giving preference to shoring up the ABE administration over sending a message outside the party, it will betray its image as a party of reform. At last year's convention, LDP lawmakers were basking in the aftermath of overwhelming victory in the House of Representatives election. LDP President Junichiro Koizumi and other party members seemed to be full of confidence. At yesterday's convention, the ruling LDP led by SHINZO ABE appeared to be on the defensive, probably because of the cabinet's unexpected slump in the polls. We wonder why the convention lacked any sense of tension or crisis, even though party members are aware of the public's cold scrutiny of its actions. The LDP may be satisfied with its present situation because the main opposition party Minshuto's (Democratic Party of Japan) support rate has also leveled off. If so, we feel we must give the LDP a warning. The guest speakers were New Komeito Chief Representative Akihiro Ota and Japan Business Federation Chairman Fujio Mitarai. In order for the LDP to play up its being an "open party," it used to be the practice to invite prominent figures as speakers from circles other than the business world and to encourage them to make candid statements. However, such a practice has been discontinued. If the party simply regarded the convention as an event to cheer on its members to fight in the upcoming unified local elections and the House of Councilors election, it has become an extremely inward-looking, apparently "arrogant" governing party in the eyes of those who are outside the party. LDP President ABE used the same speech that he delivered at the Japan National Press Club on Jan. 16, just shortening it at yesterday's convention. Some of the policy goals ABE stressed at the TOKYO 00000226 007 OF 010 convention are seemed to be the framework for the policy speech he is expected to deliver at the upcoming regular session of the Diet, which convenes on Jan. 25. Regardless of the contents of his speeches, former Prime Minister Koizumi always seemed to know how to make his appeal to the public. Abe does not need to model himself after Koizumi, but he should at least make a substantive speech. Abe stressed in his speech yesterday: "We will fight the Upper House election fair and square. We will surely be able to win in it if we show the public the goals that we should aim at, while explaining our achievements." What he said, however, was just restating his party's logic. Unless he explains what "fair and square" means and what specific goals the LDP aims at, the public will hardly be able to understand him. If he wants to advocate a policy of placing priority on regional communities, he should show the public what his policy measures are. Otherwise, he won't be able to convince them. Though ABE becomes aggressive when he has to challenge various difficult issues, including his goal for a new constitution, this time, it seems he is whistling in the dark. Although this year's noisy convention did not differ from past ones, we are disturbed that the words that should have been used were watered down. The LDP should realize that as the ruling party, it has the power to revitalize or destroy party politics. (6) Editorial: Prime Minister ABE must aim for a beautiful administration first ASAHI (Page 3) (Full) January 18, 2007 In the Liberal Democratic Party convention yesterday, Prime Minister Shinzo ABE vowed that in order to make Japan a beautiful country, he would boldly address challenges, no matter how difficult they are. But something not so beautiful has occurred under the nose of the prime minister. A series of incidents of inappropriate accounting of political funds involving ABE cabinet ministers has come to light. Without resolving them, making Japan a beautiful country is not possible. Following the resignation of Genichiro Sata as administrative reform minister late last year, a chain of office expense scandals involving lawmakers, such as Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Toshikatsu Matsuoka and Education, Science and Technology Minister Bunmei Ibuki, has emerged. Allegations have also surfaced that Matsuoka and Upper House member Hirohide Uozumi used their offices in favor of some organizations that made political donations to them. A secretary to Lower House member Seishiro Eto has also reportedly collected a large amount of money in the name of subscription fees for a business journal. The ABE administration, which was launched just over 100 days ago, has been hit by one "politics and money" scandal after another, as if the old LDP has fully awakened. TOKYO 00000226 008 OF 010 Abe appears unconcerned about those scandals. He held a press conference at the Japan National Press Club on Jan. 16 in which he only discussed the system, saying: "I am the head of the executive branch of government. The best modality for political funds must be discussed by lawmakers and political parties." ABE seems to be oblivious to the fact that the lawmakers who are responsible for the executive branch are the ones that committed the questionable conducts. There is another thing that is not beautiful. Cabinet ministers in question, all intent on rejecting the allegations, have yet to fulfill their accountability. Matsuoka said: "Expenses were reported in accordance with the Political Funds Control Law. I have fulfilled my accountability." He is totally devoid of the sincerity to concretely spell out his office expenses. The Political Funds Control Law prescribes that in view of the fact that political funds come from the public for the development of sound democratic politics, lawmakers shall clarify their incomes and expenditures. Those lawmakers suspected to have conducted inappropriate bookkeeping are obliged to offer clear explanations to the public. Abe is not facing up to lawmakers' questionable accounting practices and public distrust in politics that followed Sata's resignation. Such a stance seems to have encouraged an ugly trend to do anything as long as it does not violate the law. In the next ordinary Diet session that opens on Jan. 25, the LDP intends to discuss an Abe-initiated education-rebuilding program. The major opposition Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan),on the other hand, plans to lock horns with the ruling coalition over correcting disparities. The two parties apparently want to focus on campaign issues with the Upper House election this summer in mind. They should, instead, focus on elucidating facts about the lawmakers' shady accounting practices. Minshuto must first offer a clear explanation on President Ichiro Ozawa's office expenses in excess of 400 million yen, as well. The current political fund system that is lax with expenditures is a problem. But there are things that must be done before discussing the system. (7) Scramble for natural resources - Part 9: Oil road runs in desert, given decreasing oil output in China YOMIURI (Page 9) (Excerpts) January 16, 2007 An oil road runs in the Taklimakan Desert in northwest China, which used to be the Silk Road route. The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) constructed the road, which connects key energy facilities. In the Taklimakan Desert, CNPC has so far discovered oil and gas fields that produced a total of 2.41 billion tons of oil. TOKYO 00000226 009 OF 010 CNPC Tarim Oilfields Co. President Sun Longde said, "We will continue to explore 150 million tons of oil annually. I expect that here will become China's largest oilfield in the future." It had been known since ancient times that oil lies underground in the desert. But because of the severe climate there, with temperatures shooting up to 40 degrees in the summer and plunging to 20 degrees below zero in the winter, the desert had been left untouched until the 1980s. In the early 1990s, China launched a project to develop the frontier desert, given decreasing domestic oil output. From the Daqing Oilfield, the nation's largest oilfield, 56 million tons of oil was produced at a peak period, but oil wells there are now running dry. Meanwhile, energy demand has been on the rise in China due to its economic growth, and the nation eventually turned into an oil-importing nation from an oil-exporting nation in 1993. In an international oil-investment conference held in Beijing in March 1994, in which foreign firms also participated, China announced plans to introduce foreign capital and technologies for its energy-development projects. China started developing oilfields in deserts and at the bottom of sea, which had been impossible. In March of the same year, the State Council of the People's Republic of China finalized guidelines on industrial policy stressing the necessity of rationally making use of natural resources overseas. In response, state-owned oil companies began struggling for overseas natural resources. The 10th five-year program adopted in 2001 specified as an overseas advancement strategy, "The nation will acquire more natural resources, which are lacking, from overseas by supporting companies' resource-exploitation operations overseas." As it stands, China gave top priority to acquiring overseas concessions. Recently, attention has been focused on an argument that global oil production might decrease after reaching its peak in several years. Keeping this in mind, a sense of alarm about China's forcible takeover bids for natural resources is growing in the international community. China, however, has its own argument. The Institute of World Economics and Politics acting president said: "Foreign-affiliated plants in China use many of the energy China imports. American consumers use one-fourth of oil and 40% of natural gas in the end." China, though, seems to have taken a strategy to secure overseas natural resources while preserving domestically produced resources. In China, coal accounts for about 70% of domestic energy needs, with almost all of the needs for coal met with domestic products. Last year, however, China began to step up efforts to secure even coal from overseas or by obtaining concession rights to oilfields overseas. In December, China started imports of coal by railroad from Russia. Datong Coal Mine Group Limited Liability Corp. won coal-exploitation rights in Turkey. In addition, a number of Chinese companies have declared bid for a project to develop Tavan Tolgoi Coal Mine, which is said to be the world's largest mine. TOKYO 00000226 010 OF 010 In a speech in a meeting of the State Council of the People's Republic of China late last year, Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan said, "China should make efforts to resolve the shortage of natural resources. We should try to obtain natural resources by using foreign money reserves." China now possesses foreign reserves worth one trillion yen, or more than about 120 trillion yen, the largest amount than those of any other nations, topping Japan. If China continues to acquire natural resources with this huge amount of money, more and more natural resources in the world will be poured into China. SCHIEFFER