TOKYO MEDIA REACTION - HAMAS-FATAH CLASH AND

UNCLAS TOKYO 002729 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR I/RF, PA/PR/FPC/W, IIP/G/EA, EAP/PD, R/MR, EAP/J, EAP/P, PM; USTR FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE; TREASURY FOR OASIA/IMI; SECDEF FOR OASD/PA; CP BUTLER OKINAWA FOR AREA FIELD OFFICE; PACOM HONOLULU FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO JA SUBJECT: TOKYO MEDIA REACTION - HAMAS-FATAH CLASH AND DPRK LEAD STORIES: Monday morning's Yomiuri front-paged remarks Sunday by Assistant Secretary of State Hill in Ulaanbaatar in which he disclosed South Korean preparations to send heavy fuel oil to North Korea. ¶1. "Hamas-Fatah Reconciliation the Only Way Forward" An editorial in the conservative Sankei stated (6/17): "Due to internal conflicts between Hamas and Fatah, the Palestinian Authority (PA) has essentially been divided into two government bodies in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. As things stand, the Palestinian goal of achieving Middle East peace through statehood and coexistence with Israel has been rocked. It is imperative for the two factions to compromise, with the international community, including the UN and the Arab League, mediating between them. The internecine conflict could be called the worst crisis for the PA since the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords, which set general principles regarding Palestinian self-rule." ¶2. "Did Kim Jong Il Roar with Laughter at the Return of BDA Money?" The business-oriented Nihon Keizai editorialized (6/17): "We suspect DPRK leader Kim Jong Il, who is rumored to be in ill health, roared with laughter over the return of 25 million dollars of DRPK- linked funds held at Banco Delta Asia (BDA) in Macau via the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Russian central bank.... We have previously expressed skepticism about America's reconciliatory approach toward Pyongyang, and we are forced to conclude that the US decision to return the money played into the hands of the DPRK. Although we cannot share the optimism that the return of money will lead to a settlement of the nuclear standoff, it is our strong hope that the North Koreans will comply with US demonstration of good faith.... In Japan, there is both skepticism and distrust of US policy toward North Korea. Has the US move amplified these feelings in Japan? If North Korea does not show its sincerity, the US will be forced to again change tack." SCHIEFFER