DEMARCHE ON LIABILITY AND REDRESS UNDER THE

UNCLAS TOKYO 000647 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ECON ETRD TBIO KPAO SUBJECT: DEMARCHE ON LIABILITY AND REDRESS UNDER THE CARTAGENA PROTOCOL ON BIOSAFETY REF: SECSTATE 11910 ¶1. Per reftel, Post approached Nobuyuki Kikuchi, Deputy Director, Global Environment Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs to discuss Liability and Redress under the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. According to Kikuchi, Japan remains committed to seeing practical, compromise solutions to issues such as the definition of damage and standards of liability. However, Kikuchi feels the positions of parties to the Protocol are too wide for significant agreements to be reached at the Mexico meeting. Kikuchi will travel to Mexico as part of an eight member GOJ team including MOFA, MAFF, METI, and the Ministry of Education (essentially the same as the Japanese delegation to the Bonn MOP). ¶2. Kikuchi happens to be traveling to Washington, DC on Thursday February 19 and expressed a willingness to discuss L&D issues with USDA and State representatives on the afternoon or evening of Friday February 20. Kikuchi very much appreciated similar meetings last November. To arrange such a meeting, Kikuchi suggested coordinating with the Japanese Embassy in Washington or contacting him via his personal email kikuchinobuyuki@hotmail.com or on his cell phone (011-81-80-3488-1914). However, Kikuchi already has some side meetings scheduled with USG representatives in Mexico. ¶3. Comment. Japan is on a per capita basis the world's largest importer of biotech crops and is highly dependent on the imported grains that would be covered by any agreement on Liability and Redress. For this reason, Japan, and Kikuchi in particular, continues to push for practical outcomes that do not disrupt trade. In 2008, Japan's support of a non-binding approach to Liability and Redress in the Biosafety Protocol (which is part of the CDB) was critical to the negotiation and demonstrated positive leadership in an organization where the United States is not represented. However, in October 2010, Japan will host the 10th Conference of the Parties (COP-10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). As host of the 2010 conference, Japan can be expected to be more reserved in the policy positions it takes. The run up to the meeting provides numerous opportunities for jointly sponsored workshops with CBD members, such as was done in 2008 in Tokyo under the auspices of APEC. Such activities could also give cover to Japan to continue to push for non-trade distorting outcomes. End comment. ZUMWALT