JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11/06/09

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E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11/06/09 INDEX: 1) Prime Minister's daily schedule (Nikkei) U.S.-Japan relations: 2) Okada and Campbell strive to fine tune coordination for upcoming summit (Yomiuri) 3) Foreign Minister and Assistant Secretary of State affirm Japan-U.S. alliance (Asahi) 4) GOJ officials under LDP administration relay to U.S. concern about reduction in "nuclear umbrella" (Asahi) Futenma saga: 5) Senator Inoue warns Governor Nakaima that continued delay on Futenma issue could cause U.S. lawmakers to doubt bilateral alliance (Mainichi) 6) Kadena mayor expresses opposition to integration idea (Nikkei) 7) U.S. urges Japan to reach Futenma decision by year's end (Nikkei) Afghanistan aid: 8) NATO's secretary-general asks Japan to increase financial assistance for Afghanistan (Yomiuri) 9) Japan to earmark $7 billion in total over the next five years for Afghan reconstruction (Mainichi) Politics: 10) Japanese Embassy officials in Washington used MOFA's slush fund to entertain Board of Audit of Japan delegation (Tokyo Shimbun) 11) Prime Minister adopts wait-and-see attitude toward local suffrage for foreigners (Asahi) 12) Fukushima to participate in rally against relocation of MCAS Futenma elsewhere in Okinawa (Nikkei) Articles: 1) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) Prime Minister's schedule, November 5 NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) November 6, 2009 07:05 Met Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirano and deputy chief cabinet secretaries -- Matsuno and Matsui - at the Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei). 10:15 Attended Grand Cordon award ceremony at the Imperial Palace. 11:59 Met Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Haraguchi and Parliamentary Internal Affairs Secretary Ogawa at the Kantei. 13:00 Attended a Lower House Budget Committee session. 17:08 Met Finance Minister Fujii and Administrative Vice Finance Minister Tango, with Hirano present. . 18:43 Met Senior Vice Foreign Minister Fukuyama, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Sasae, and Agriculture Ministry Minister's Secretariat Director General for International Affairs Hayashida. 19:33 Met Japan Research Institute Chairman Jitsuro Terashima. 20:41 Arrived at his official residential quarters. 2) Japan, U.S. making earnest efforts to coordinate for Hatoyama-Obama summit, seek meeting point on Futenma issue YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) TOKYO 00002556 002 OF 008 November 6, 2009 With U.S. President Barack Obama coming to Japan in one week, the Japanese and U.S. governments are making every effort to reach compromises on existing problems in bilateral relations, including the question of the relocation of the U.S. Marines' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa, to prevent them from affecting the summit meeting. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell stopped in Japan on Nov. 5 on his way home from a visit to Myanmar (Burma) and met Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada and other Japanese officials. The Japanese side is believed to have sought his understanding on Japan's position of giving priority to examining the process by which the agreement to relocate the Futenma base to the coastal area of the U.S. forces' Camp Schwab was reached and postponing a decision until after President Obama's visit to Japan. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama still has not ruled out the possibility of moving the Futenma base out of Okinawa, so there remains a significant gap with the U.S. side, which demands the implementation of the existing agreement on Futenma relocation. However, the President is also suffering from declining support ratings at home on such issues as sending additional troops to Afghanistan, so he wants to avoid a situation in which the failure of his summit meeting with an ally will further damage his administration. It is believed that the statement of State Department spokesman Ian Kelly at a news conference on Nov. 4 that "the U.S. has not set any kind of deadline" for the Futenma relocation issue was related to this concern. Nevertheless, according to a source familiar with Japan-U.S. diplomatic relations, Campbell reportedly told the Japanese side that "the President will say 'the Futenma issue is very important' at the summit meeting." It appears that "this is meant to convey a clear message that endless procrastination is unacceptable." Meanwhile, the Japanese side is also keen on removing friction in Japan-U.S. relations. At his news conference on Nov. 5, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano chose his words carefully when discussing the Futenma issue, saying: "We are at a critical period." The Japanese government intends to compile an outline of aid measures for Afghanistan before the President's visit in order to meet U.S. expectations as much as possible. Hirano, Okada, Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa, and other senior officials made final adjustments at the Prime Minister's Official Residence on Nov. 5, and a decision will be made within this week. 3) Okada, Campbell confirm bilateral ties ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) November 6, 2009 Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada met with visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Campbell yesterday at the Foreign Ministry. Tokyo and Washington have different views on such matters as the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture. Ahead of U.S. President Obama's visit to Japan, however, Okada and Campbell reaffirmed the rocksolid alliance between Japan and the United States. They did not go too far into pending issues TOKYO 00002556 003 OF 008 and tried instead to set the atmosphere for the summit meeting. This is the third time for Campbell to visit Japan since the Hatoyama cabinet came into office. In the meeting, Okada and Campbell confirmed that Japan and the United States will work together in the areas of climate change, energy issues, the war on terror, nuclear disarmament and nuclear nonproliferation, and assistance to Afghanistan. Campbell sought to work toward the success of the summit meeting. "It will be beneficial for both Japan and the United States if preparations for the summit meeting are carried out effectively," he said. Campbell indicated his awareness of the Futenma issue as an "important matter," but he did not call for it to be settled before Obama's visit to Japan. Okada agreed with Campbell and explained why he had to forgo his planned visit to the United States. Okada had considered visiting the United States to carry out coordination before the presidential visit to Japan. He told Campbell that the Diet schedule prevented him from going ahead with his plan to visit the U.S. Campbell showed his understanding of the situation. Campbell also met with the Foreign Ministry's North American Affairs Bureau Director General Kazuyoshi Umemoto and Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau Director General Akitaka Saiki. 4) Former U.S. secretary of defense testifies that Japanese authorities conveyed to U.S. their concern over diminishing nuclear umbrella during LDP-New Komeito administration ASAHI (Page 1) (Full) November 6, 2009 Hirotsugu Mochizuki, Washington It has become clear that Japanese government officials under the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito administration expressed concern from last year through this year to a U.S. congressional panel that trust in the so-called nuclear umbrella, a guarantee by the United States to retaliate with nuclear weapons in the event Japan comes under a nuclear attack, might decrease due to nuclear disarmament. This means Japan, which is calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons as the only atomic-bombed country, was asking the United States to maintain its nuclear capability at the same time. This was revealed in an Asahi Shimbun interview with former Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger who co-chaired the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States. The commission, established during the Bush administration as a supra-partisan group, heard opinions of experts and others and presented a set of proposals on nuclear policy to the Obama administration in May this year. The administration is now formulating a Nuclear Posture Review (NPR),which will serve as a guideline for the next five to 10 years, based on those proposals, with the aim of announcing it early next year. Schlesinger testified that the Japanese government officials from whom the commission heard opinions had expressed concern, asking if the United States would continue to maintain its nuclear umbrella to defend Japan. According to the Japanese government, Hans Christensen of the Federation of American Scientists, a nongovernmental organization, TOKYO 00002556 004 OF 008 has also confirmed this fact with several commission members. According to Christensen, the Japanese government official classified the desired nuclear capability of the United States into six items, including "reliability" and "flexibility," and presented documents listing specific examples, such as modernized nuclear warheads, nuclear-powered submarines, and B-52 bombers. The names of four individuals, including a minister at the embassy in the U.S. were specified as the Japanese government officials at the end of the final report produced by the commission. The commission also proposed the establishment of a forum for close dialogue between Japan and the United States. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is aiming for a nuclear-free world, while indicating that maintaining nuclear deterrence is one idea for dealing with real threats. Attention is focused on how the new administration is going to handle the matter. 5) Prolonged confusion may raise doubts in Congress about Japan-U.S alliance: U.S. senator MAINICHI (Page 2) (Full) November 6, 2009 Washington, Jiji U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye, chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, held talks with visiting Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima. In reference to the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, Inouye pointed out during the talks that if the confusion continues, it may raise doubts in Congress about the Japan-U.S. alliance. The senator expressed his strong frustration over the Japanese government's inconsistency on the Futenma issue. Inouye is a prominent Democrat of Japanese descent. 6) Kadena mayor nixes base merger NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) November 6, 2009 The opposition Liberal Democratic Party yesterday held a joint meeting of its foreign affairs and national defense divisions at its headquarters, during which the LDP held a hearing with Kadena Town Mayor Tokujitsu Miyagi from Okinawa Prefecture over Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada's proposal to integrate the heliport functions of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, into the U.S. Kadena Air Base, which straddles the town of Kadena and other municipalities. Miyagi stressed that he plans to reject the proposal to merge the Futenma base with the Kadena base. "There's no way I can approve of it," he said. 7) U.S. presses Japan for settlement of Futenma issue by year's end to avoid adverse effects on deliberations on national defense budget NIKKEI (Page 1) (Abridged slightly) November 6, 2009 Sachiko Deshimaru, Washington It has become clear that the Obama administration has asked the TOKYO 00002556 005 OF 008 Japanese government to settle the question of the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station (in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture) before year's end. Washington has already told Tokyo that President Barack Obama's visit to Japan starting on Nov. 12 would not be the deadline for a settlement. At the same time, in order to prevent the matter from adversely affecting the U.S. congressional deliberations on the national defense budget, the U.S. government asked the Hatoyama administration to set the year end as the new deadline. The Japanese government will be pressed to make a political decision before next January's mayoral election in Nago, the relocation site for Futenma. According to sources familiar with Japan-U.S. relations, the U.S. government has set the year end as the deadline because it wants to enact the Fiscal Year 2010 (October 2009 - September 2010) Department of Defense Appropriations bill before the winter recess. The bill includes expenses related to the relocation of 8,000 U.S. Marine Corps from Okinawa to Guam. If there are no prospects for the relocation of Futenma, it will contradict the explanation that the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan is part of the same package from the viewpoint of maintaining deterrence. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has referred to the option of settling the Futenma issue after next January's Nago mayoral election. In the wake of the U.S. request for a settlement within the year, the Japanese government will be pressed to come up with a new response. 8) NATO secretary general urges Japan to boost funding for Afghan assistance YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) November 6, 2009 Koya Ozaki, Brussels North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen gave an interview to the Yomiuri Shimbun on Nov. 4. During the interview, he painted a bleak picture of the state of Afghan assistance, in particular in the field of training military personnel and police officers. He said: "Understaffing is a serious problem." With regard to Japan's measures to support Afghanistan, Rasmussen said, "I respect the position of not dispatching troops," indicating his intention of not asking Japan to send Self-Defense Forces personnel. He then pointed out that due to the reinforcement of troops and police officers, funds were needed to pay their salaries and to purchase new equipment. He expressed hopes that Japan will boost its funding. "Japan can fulfill a useful role in that area," Rasmussen said. He clarified that NATO will call on the Afghan government for a fresh agreement on the prevention of political corruption. NATO also plans to hold a meeting of cabinet-level members from concerned countries probably before the end of the year in order to have the Karzai government vow to make efforts to improve its government. NATO commands the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. 9) Government plans to disburse 7 billion dollars in aid for Afghanistan over five years TOKYO 00002556 006 OF 008 MAINICHI (Page 3) (Excerpts) November 6, 2009 The government yesterday compiled a package of new assistance measures for Afghanistan. The government will disburse 5 billion dollars over the next five years starting in fiscal 2010. With an additional 2 billion dollars for Pakistan, Japan will disburse a total of 7 billion dollars. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama intends to tell U.S. President Barack Obama, who will arrive in Japan on Nov. 12, about the package during their summit meeting. Japan-U.S. relations have been strained over the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture. Under these circumstances, the government aims to underscore to the President, who has been troubled over the security situation in Afghanistan, its eagerness to offer contributions. The package includes measures to provide vocational training for former soldiers of the anti-government Taliban; continue to pay half of the salaries of about 80,000 police officers; provide training for police officers; and develop the Kabul metropolitan area. The government also plans to take measures to strengthen the security of the border with Pakistan, which has become a strong foothold for the Taliban. The Hatoyama government was trying to come up with manpower contribution measures to replace the ongoing Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean, but it decided to depend on "checkbook diplomacy" due to the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan. 10) Disclosed MOFA files show discretionary funds used for dinner of minister, officials of Japanese Embassy in U.S. and Japanese Board of Audit officials in 2000 TOKYO SHIMBUN (Top play) (Full) November 6, 2009 It was learned on Nov. 5 from copies of government files obtained by the NPO "Citizens' Center for Information Disclosure" (in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo) that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) used its discretionary funds (so-called secret funds) to pay for a dinner for a minister and other officials at the Japanese embassy in the U.S. with the president and other officials of the Japanese Board of Audit during their visit to the U.S. in January 2000. According to the disclosed documents, four Board of Audit officials, including the president, had dinner with the minister and three other Japanese Embassy officials. The dinner, which was recorded as an "exchange of views on the situation of the U.S. General Accounting Office," cost 588 dollars (approximately 62,000 yen at 2000 exchange rates). A payment request was made and the bill was paid out of the discretionary funds on Feb. 7. Responding to reporters' queries, the Board of Audit explained: "The purpose of the visit to the U.S. was to participate in an international meeting of responsible officials of audit agencies. We are looking into the details, but dinner parties during an audit are prohibited, in principle, for security reasons." MOFA explained: "The gathering was for the purpose of preparing for meetings with U.S. officials, and this is part of diplomatic activities that are not made public." Both the Board of Audit and MOFA denied that the dinner compromised the impartiality of the audit. However, the Citizens' Center took issue with this, saying it was TOKYO 00002556 007 OF 008 "clearly an unauthorized expenditure." Before this dinner in question, Board of Audit officials had been found to have been entertained by administration agencies they were due to audit in several cases of "kankan settai (wining and dining of bureaucrats by other bureaucrats using public funds)." They are likely to be criticized at least for indiscretion in this case. The Citizens' Center requested the disclosure of MOFA files related to the discretionary funds in April 2001. The request was denied, so the group appealed to the Tokyo District Court. (Later) the Tokyo High Court ordered the partial release of documents, but the Supreme Court rejected in February 2009 a suit for the release of all documents. The verdict of the Tokyo High Court on the disclosure of certain documents on dining expenses involving Japanese citizens became final. MOFA disclosed 953 documents on Oct. 16. An analysis of these documents shows that in addition to the case in question, discretionary funds were used to cover Japanese Embassy officials' dinners with MOFA officials and Diet members visiting the U.S. on 23 occasions in February and March 2000. 11) Hatoyama to carefully watch development of discussions on local voting rights for permanent foreign residents, use of separate surnames by married couples ASAHI (Page 4) (Excerpts) November 6, 2009 In a meeting of the House of Representatives' Budget Committee yesterday, Liberal Democratic Party members Hirofumi Shimomura and Akemi Inada, who are both known as outspoken hawks, took the floor as questioners and asked Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama for his views on the issues of local voting rights for permanent foreign residents and the use of separate surnames by married couples. On these issues, views are also divided in the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ),so Hatoyama exercised caution in his replies. Inada cited that Hatoyama indicated his eagerness to extend local voting rights to permanent foreign residents on an Internet video site in April when he was secretary general of the party by saying: "It is not correct to think that the Japanese Islands belong exclusively to the Japanese people." Inada asked: "Is the prime minister's willingness to give local voting rights to permanent foreign residents a result of your fraternity politics?" Hatoyama said in his reply: "I would like to consider the issue of local voting rights for foreign residents in a positive manner" and "I think that unless Japan is made more open, it might be extremely difficult to resolve many difficult issues facing this country." But he also indicated he would carefully watch the development of future discussions on this issue, saying: "I do not mean that I plan to force the issue." Inada asked for Hatoyama's view about the issue of using separate surnames by married couples. Hatoyama indicated a prudent view, saying: "Some point out that the ties (among family members) might become looser. I think it is important to deepen national debate, and I wonder if it is proper to force the issue." 12) Fukushima to participate in rally against Futenma relocation in Okinawa TOKYO 00002556 008 OF 008 NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) November 6, 2009 State Minister for Consumer Affairs and Declining Birthrate Mizuho Fukushima, who heads the Social Democratic Party, one of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's two coalition partners, will participate in a rally to be held Nov. 8 in Okinawa Prefecture against the planned relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station within the prefecture, sources said yesterday. Fukushima will not speak at the rally. She explained that she is going to be there as her party's head. However, the relocation of Futenma airfield has become an issue pending between Japan and the United States, with U.S. President Obama's visit to Japan close at hand. Her participation in the rally could further becloud the issue. ROOS