JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 07/22/08

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 TOKYO 002006 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: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 07/22/08 Index: Defense and security affairs: 1) Okinawa Prefecture Assembly passes resolution against relocating Futenma Air Station, making completion of realignment project on time doubtful (Sankei) 2) Government, Okinawa Prefecture agree to set up working team to find a way to remove the danger of Futenma Air Station (Mainichi) 3) Deadlock continues on Okinawa's plan to move Futenma relocation site into the sea (Asahi) 4) Government upset by Okinawa's intransigence on Futenma relocation issue (Asahi) 5) Government plans to send fact-finding mission to E. Timor as part of decision on whether to dispatch troops for PKO (Yomiuri) ASEAN forum: 6) Foreign Minister Koumura arrives in Singapore for ASEAN ARF (Tokyo Shimbun) 7) Japan, ROK, China to agree to jointly support ASEAN, including agricultural area (Yomiuri) WTO Doha Round: 8) Farm and trade ministers plan negotiation strategy for reaching compromise between advanced and developing countries at the WTO round (Nikkei) 9) WTO agricultural talks: Government considering accepting drop in rice tariff of 20 to 50 PERCENT (Asahi) 10) Survey of 100 top companies in Japan finds 43 expect economic recession to set it, led by high costs of materials (Yomiuri) Political scene: 11) Prime Minister Fukuda will make final decision on cabinet shuffle on July 29 (Asahi) 12) Speculation abounds about how Fukuda will come down on Cabinet shuffle (Yomiuri) Articles: 1) Okinawa assembly adopts resolution against Futenma relocation SANKEI (Page 2) (Abridged) July 19, 2008 The Okinawa prefectural assembly yesterday adopted a resolution opposing the government's plan to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in the island prefecture's central city of Ginowan to a coastal area of Camp Schwab, a U.S. military base in the prefecture's northern coastal city of Nago, with a majority of votes from the opposition parties. Okinawa Prefecture's Governor Hirokazu Nakaima, who has conditionally accepted Futenma airfield's relocation within the prefecture, will inevitably harden his attitude to call for the government to modify the Futenma relocation plan. Meanwhile, Japan and the United States have agreed to complete Futenma relocation in 2014. The government will now face even more difficulties in carrying it out as scheduled. The government plans to complete an environmental assessment by the end of July next year and go through procedures by the end of next year for land reclamation off the coast of Camp Schwab. However, if TOKYO 00002006 002 OF 008 the government has to suspend its ongoing environmental assessment or if the governor is substantially late in his approval of land reclamation, it will be impossible to complete Futenma relocation by ¶2014. In that case, the agreement between Japan and the United States may founder. 2) Government, Okinawa agree to establish working group to study ways to eliminate danger of Futenma Air Station MAINICHI (Page 2) (Full) July 19, 2008 The council to discuss the relocation of Futenma Air Station among the central government and affected local governments in Okinawa met on July 18 at the Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei). As a result, an agreement was reached to set up a working team for the central and prefectural governments to jointly study ways to remove dangerous aspects of Futenma Air Station before the planned relocation, as requested by Okinawa. An accord was also reached to set up a working group for the central government and prefectural governments to exchange views on a construction plan for the relocation site and the environmental impact assessment that began in March this year. The governments of Japan and the United States are in accord to relocate Futenma Air Station to the coastal area of Camp Schwab in Nago by 2014. But relocation work has been stalled due to Okinawa's request for moving the relocation site into the ocean. Given the situation, to eliminate the danger of Futenma Air Station before its relocation, Tokyo and Washington reached an agreement in August last year on eight items, including a shift in flight paths of U.S. military helicopters. In the council's previous meeting in April, Governor Hirokazu Nakaima proposed the establishment of the joint working team. The working team to be composed of division director-level officials of the Defense Ministry and Okinawa prefectural government will begin work before the end of this month. Although Okinawa has called for the closure of Futenma Air Station in three years and other matters, the U.S. government has not responded to them. Under the circumstances, whether the working team can come up with any effective conclusion remains to be seen. 3) Futenma offshore relocation plan hits snag ASAHI (Page 4) (Abridged) July 19, 2008 On the pending issue of relocating the heliport functions of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, the government explored the feasibility of moving the planned site of an alternative facility into the sea. This offshore relocation plan, however, has now hit a snag. The government and Okinawa Prefecture are still wide apart over how far to move the relocation site to an offshore area. Moreover, the United States has reminded Japan that the Futenma relocation plan should be carried out as agreed. It has been 12 years since the United States agreed with Japan to return Futenma airfield. Futenma relocation has yet to find a way out. "Including the idea of moving the site (of an alternative base to an offshore area),if there is a proposal from the governor, we will TOKYO 00002006 003 OF 008 respond in a sincere manner." On July 18, the government held a consultative meeting with local officials from Okinawa's prefectural and municipal governments at the prime minister's office over the planned relocation of Futenma airfield, with Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura presiding. In the meeting, Machimura touched on Okinawa's proposal to move the relocation site into the sea. The government wanted to reach an agreement that day. However, the government could not do so. In 2006, the Japanese and U.S. governments agreed on the current plan for Futenma relocation. This plan is to build a V-shaped pair of airstrips at Henoko Point in Okinawa Prefecture's northern coastal city of Nago. Okinawa has asked the government to move the relocation site into the sea for noise abatement and other reasons. The planned construction of a new base needs to fill up public waters, and the Okinawa governor has authority for approval. If Okinawa Prefecture opposes the Futenma relocation, the government cannot set about constructing a new base. Consequently, the U.S. military's realignment may go under in its entirety. The government's scenario was to comply with the Okinawa governor's request and then to consult with the United States on revising the Futenma relocation plan. The government, centering on Machimura, has held negotiations with Okinawa Prefecture over the past several months. "It's all right to move the runways to an offshore area. If you say the relocation site should be moved 100 meters, then we will study it." With this, Machimura sounded out Okinawa Prefecture's Governor Hirokazu Nakaima. In this February's consultative meeting, Machimura declared, "We want to reach a settlement at an early date, with the offshore plan in mind as well." Machimura repeatedly met with Nakaima thereafter and told him that the government would consider taking additional incentive measures for Okinawa's development. According to a government official, Nakaima also consented to the government's plan to consult with the United States on revising the relocation plan. However, the government and Okinawa confronted over how far to move the planned relocation site. The government, as a result of its study, told Okinawa that the relocation site can be moved about 55 meters without doing an environmental assessment over again. Okinawa insisted that the site can be moved further after several environmental assessments. However, the government made no concessions, maintaining that it is a circumvention of the law. 4) Nakaima growing impatient ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) July 19, 2008 Okinawa Prefecture is growing impatient with the lack of progress on its proposal for Futenma airfield's offshore relocation. "I thought it would be easy to meet our request at this level even without consulting the U.S. government, but I was wrong," Okinawa Prefecture's Governor Nakaima told a news conference on July 18. Since last fall when the Fukuda cabinet came into office, Machimura has explored the possibility of moving the planned relocation site of Futenma airfield into the sea, relying on his personal channel with Machimura, who was Nakaima's junior at the former Ministry of TOKYO 00002006 004 OF 008 International Trade and Industry. However, Nakaima could not find any common ground with the government. "When Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura became our counterpart, we were in a mood for talks," a senior official of Okinawa Prefecture said. "But," he added, "few of our requests have been granted." As a result of this June's election for the Okinawa prefectural assembly, the ruling parties led by the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito failed to retain a majority. Those affiliated with the opposition parties that are opposed to Futenma relocation within Okinawa Prefecture won a majority of the seats. On July 18, the Okinawa prefectural assembly adopted a resolution opposed to the planned relocation of Futenma airfield to Henoko Point in Nago City. The assembly's gallery was filled with local residents opposing the Futenma relocation. "It's regrettable," Nakaima said. He went on: "I want to ask them when Futenma will be returned to us, and I also want to ask them if this possibility is in sight." However, there is still no solution in sight for Okinawa in its negotiations with the government. One senior official of Okinawa Prefecture said: "The United States has not pledged to revise the relocation plan, so I wonder how far our proposal is feasible in our talks with the government." 5) Government to send fact-finding team to East Timor before discussing advisability of PKO dispatch YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) July 19, 2008 The government decided on July 18 to send to East Timor a fact-finding team composed of eight personnel from the Cabinet Office, Foreign Ministry, and Japan Coast Guard to consider assistance, including a dispatch of JCG personnel to UN peacekeeping operations there. The team will be dispatched for about a week from late July. Its mission will be to collect requests and information on the situation of the country from the East Timor government and the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT),which is conducting security operations and assisting the country in its efforts to nurture a national police force. Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura in a press conference on the evening of July 18 said: "We need to grasp what kinds of assistance are available and the country's needs. We have yet to decide on sending personnel to that country (under the PKO cooperation law)." 6) Foreign Minister Koumura arrives in Singapore TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) July 22, 2008 Yuji Nishimura, Singapore Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura arrived in Singapore on the evening of July 21 to attend a foreign ministerial of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members and Japan, China and South Korea, which will start on the July 22, as well as a conference of the ASEAN Regional Forum. TOKYO 00002006 005 OF 008 Besides the ASEAN-hosted meetings, Komura is expected to hold bilateral talks on the 22nd with his Chinese and Singaporean counterparts Yang Jiechi and George Yong-Boon Yeo. In an effort to repair strained relations with South Korea due to the Japanese government's decision to mention Japan's ownership of the long disputed Takeshima Islets, called Dokdo in South Korea, in its new teaching guidelines for social studies for junior high schools, Koumura hopes to have an opportunity to hold talks with his South Korean counterpart Chung Jong Hwan. 7) Japan, China, South Korea to agree on creating ASEAN support fund for agriculture and other sectors YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) July 21, 2008 Japan, China, and South Korea will jointly establish a fund to help the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) improve its information technology infrastructure and agricultural productivity. The three countries are expected to reach an agreement in an ASEAN-plus-Three meeting of foreign ministers to be held in Singapore on July 22. The size of the fund will initially be about 300 million yen. Ten percent will be covered by ASEAN members. The remaining amount will be evenly split by Japan, China, and South Korea. Instead of directly supporting agriculture and IT projects, the fund will be used for related budgets to prepare such projects. For instance, ASEAN nations could use the fund to hold seminars and symposia to consider ways to increase rice production in response to the food crisis. Japan, China, and South Korea are aiming to strengthen ties with ASEAN. 8) WTO: Both industrialized and developing countries should make concessions, say agriculture, METI ministers NIKKEI (Page 3) (Full) July 22, 2008 Japanese ministers at a meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO),which opened in Geneva on July 21, revealed their negotiation policies. Agriculture Minister Masatoshi Wakabayashi said, "It is necessary for both industrialized countries and developing countries to make concessions in order for the ministerial to reach a settlement." Economic, Trade and Industry Minister Akira Amari noted, "Japan has already accepted pain in the agricultural field. We would suffer a setback unless we can achieve results in the mining and manufacturing area." The focus for Japan is whether it can block the introduction of a tariff cap system designed to constrain all tariffs on farm products below a designated level and secure 8 PERCENT of all farm products as key items whose tariff cuts can be eased as exceptions. Wakabayashi said, "I will continue talks until I can obtain satisfactory results." 9) Rice tariff: Government considering accepting 20 PERCENT -50 PERCENT cut at WTO talks; Opposed to uniform tariff cap TOKYO 00002006 006 OF 008 ASAHI (Page 1) (Full) July 21, 2008 The Japanese government has begun considering lowering rice tariffs by about 20 PERCENT -50 PERCENT at the multilateral free trade under the World Trade Organization (WTO) with the intention to accept proposals by the chairman of the WTO's agriculture negotiations. However, it will strongly oppose a proposal for uniformly imposing an upper limit on tariffs on farm products. It will make its stand clear at a ministerial to be held in Geneva starting on July 21 for a settlement before year's end. Rice became subject to tariffs after the Uruguay Round. The current tariff is about 340 yen per kilogram (778 PERCENT on an ad valorem basis). According to the chairman's latest proposal, farm products of industrialized countries will be categorized into general items and key items for protection. Tariffs will be lowered accordingly. The margin of a cut in tariffs on key items would be within one-third to two-thirds of such tariffs on general items. Each country will likely be able to designate a specific proportion of all its trade items as key items. The Japanese government plans to include rice in a list of key items. An estimate worked out, based on the chairman's proposal, found that a new tariff on rice would become approximately 180 yen to 260 yen per kilogram. Rice grown in Thailand, the largest rice exporter in the world, at present is about 80 yen per kilogram. Even if a new tariff is set at the lowest level of 180 yen, the import price would become about 260 yen. Transportation cost would also be added to this price. Japanese rice is about 230 yen per kilogram. The government says that since its quality is high, it can still maintain competitiveness. For this reason, the Japanese government has now almost reached a common understanding that it will have to accept a tariff increase in line with the chairman's proposal, as one negotiator said. Regarding a cut in tariffs on farm products, Brazil and other exporters are calling for the introduction of a tariff cap system. Uniformly setting a tariff cap of 100 PERCENT has been floated. If realized, imported Thai rice would become cheaper than domestic rice. The Japanese government is determined not to accept such a rate. Japan has sought to have 10 PERCENT -15 PERCENT of its farm products -- 1,332 -- to be accepted as key products. However, following the chairman's proposal of 4 PERCENT -6 PERCENT , it has changed to a flexible stance with Agriculture Minister Wakabayashi saying, "I want to secure at least 8 PERCENT ." A ministerial at the WTO is expected to continue for about a week. In addition to tariffs, agriculture subsidies will also be on the table. A reduction in tariffs on mined and manufactured products is also on the table to be tackled in tandem with farm products. The WTO is aiming for a general agreement on overall products. If the ministerial this time falls apart, reaching an agreement within the target of this year will be difficult. 10) Poll: Number of companies that see the economy is in a recession increases to 43 TOKYO 00002006 007 OF 008 YOMIURI (Page 1) (Full) July 19, 2008 The Yomiuri Shimbun on July 18 tallied the results of a business survey it conducted on 100 leading companies. To a question on the current state of the economy, 43 companies, 1.5 times more than the number in the previous survey (April, 2008) which was 29 companies then, replied that they felt the economy was already in a recession. Only two companies thought that the economy was recovering, but the pace was moderate. In the survey carried out in November 2007, 67 companies replied that the economy was moderately recovering. The results indicate a pessimistic view has rapidly spread this year. Survey on 100 leading companies The survey was carried out from July 7 through 14. As factors (multiple replies were allowed) that are having an adverse impact on the economy, 92 companies cited the steep rise in the prices of raw materials, including crude oil and grain. Replies, such as "sluggish consumer spending," given by 47 companies, or "a fall in U.S.-bound exports," cited by 46 companies, were noticeable. Only nine companies cited "the rapid high yen-weak dollar-trend," compared with 39 in the previous survey. Regarding a consumption tax hike, seven companies thought that the consumption tax should be hiked at an early date, while 37 companies took a stand that a consumption tax increase would be unavoidable in the future. More than 40 PERCENT of respondents thus approved a hike in the consumption tax. In the November 2007 survey, seven companies replied that the consumption tax should not be increased. However, no companies objected to a consumption tax hike in the latest survey. 11) Prime Minister Fukuda considering cabinet shuffle, to make final decision by July 29 ASAHI (Page 1) (Full) July 21, 2008 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda is planning to shuffle his cabinet before an extra ordinary Diet session is convened, possibly in late August. He will make a final decision by July 29 when the cabinet approves budgetary request guidelines for fiscal 2009. Fukuda hopes to make clear his political stance by shuffling the cabinet, most members of which were kept on from the government of former Prime Minister SHINZO Abe. When Fukuda formed his cabinet last September, he retained 15 of the 17 ministers of the ABE cabinet. The dominant view in the ruling camp is that the cabinet should be shuffled in order to boost the Fukuda government's popularity, which has been low. A person close to Fukuda indicated on the 20th that Fukuda had decided to shuffle the cabinet, saying: "The Prime Minister no longer is wavering on that." Fukuda has been vacationing at his official and private residences, as well as at a hotel in Tokyo. The possibility is high that he will shuffle the cabinet before coming up with such policy measures as ones dealing with medical care for the elderly, a set of five social welfare steps, and additional ways to halt soaring fuel prices. TOKYO 00002006 008 OF 008 Fukuda appears to be carrying out a shuffle sometime between late July and early August at the earliest. The focus is on whether he can display his own political identity in handling a bill extending the Afghan refueling support special measures law, which will become an important issue in the upcoming extra session, as well as in picking a minister for a consumer affairs agency minister. Attention will be also on how Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura and Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Yoichi Masuzoe will be treated. If Fukuda finds it difficult to put his favorites in his new cabinet, he may forgo shuffling the cabinet. 12) Prime Minister Fukuda resumes official duties today, may make decision to shuffle cabinet YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) July 22, 2008 Wrapping up his summer vacation, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda is to resume his official duties today. During the six-day vacation, Fukuda appears to have looked into a strategy of managing his government in the future, while staying at a Tokyo hotel. The major focus of attention is now whether he will carry out a cabinet shuffle. Fukuda stayed at his official residence adjacent to the Prime Minister's Official Residence on July 16. Since the 17th, he and his wife Kiyoko stayed at the hotel, without going any place far. There were no politicians who called on him at the hotel, according to sources concerned. He reportedly exchanged views on a political timetable on the phone with senior members of the ruling coalition. In addition to coordination with the ruling parties on a political calendar with an eye on the upcoming extraordinary Diet session, Fukuda will have to deal with such political issues as the compilation of budgetary request guidelines for fiscal 2009, as well as a set of five relief measures for social welfare. He is expected to discuss with New Komeito leader Akihiro Ota this week a timetable for shuffling the cabinet and for convening in the fall an extra Diet session. If Fukuda shuffles the cabinet, it would be the first time for him since he assumed office last September. Of the 17 cabinet ministers, 15 came from the cabinet of former Prime Minister SHINZO Abe. Many in the ruling camp have called on Fukuda to shuffle the cabinet to display his own political identity. Meanwhile, some have taken a cautious stance about a shuffle, fearing that if a scandal involving a new cabinet minister is discovered, the new cabinet would grind to halt. ZUMWALT