DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 04/22/09

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 TOKYO 000941

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SUBJECT: DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 04/22/09

INDEX:

(1) SACO-era Defense Agency division director reveals that he held
talks with U.S. side with deployment of Ospreys at Futenma
replacement facility in mind; Possible questions and answers
prepared without touching on deployment plan [Ryukyu Shimpo]

(2) Government starts negotiations with U.S. on change of helipad
installation site near village in Futenma relocation plan [Okinawa
Times]

(3) Yachi's comment on return of 3.5 islands creating stir;
Government desperate to cap it [Nikkei]

(4) U.S. gives up on building reprocessing plant, casting pall on
nuclear fuel cycle [Asahi]

ARTICLES:

(1) SACO-era Defense Agency division director reveals that he held
talks with U.S. side with deployment of Ospreys at Futenma
replacement facility in mind; Possible questions and answers
prepared without touching on deployment plan

RYUKYU SHIMPO (Page 1) (Full)
April 21, 2009

Takumi Takimoto, Ikue Nakaima

Defense Policy Bureau Director-General Nobushige Takamizawa was
serving as the Defense Agency's Defense Operations Division director
responsible for negotiations with the United States during the
period of the Japan-U.S. Special Action Committee on Okinawa (SACO)
that decided on the relocation and return of the U.S. Marine Corps'
Futenma AIR Station. Takamizawa revealed in an interview with the
Ryukyu Shimpo yesterday that he had continued coordinating views
with the U.S. side until immediately before the SACO produced its
final report, while bearing in mind the deployment of MV-22 Osprey
vertical takeoff and landing aircrafts at the envisioned Futenma
replacement facility. It has also become clear through a U.S.
document detailing input from Takamizawa that Japan and the United
States, in anticipation of inquiries from local residents, had made
arrangements to provide answers in a way not to refer to the plan to
deploy [Ospreys]. The Japanese government has so far mentioned only
the possibility of [the U.S. military] deploying [Ospreys] in the
future. This is the first time that a government official
responsible for negotiations [with the U.S. side] has admitted to
having talks on the deployment of Ospreys.

It is clear that the deployment of Ospreys at the Futenma
replacement facility was excised from the draft SACO final report at
the request of Japan. The existence of a secret bilateral commitment
to deploy Ospreys has once again been exposed.

In the interview, Takamizawa avoided referring to what had
specifically been discussed between Japan and the United States,
saying, "I don't remember." About the reason why the deployment of
Ospreys was eliminated from the SACO final report, Takamizawa said,
"Because the deployment was uncertain."

The document in question was presented by the U.S. Department of
Defense in connection with a suit over dugongs [an endangered

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species of mammal in waters off Okinawa]. It is a five-page fax
message of November 27, 1996, sent by the US Forces Japan Command
person in charge to such places as the U.S. Pacific Command and the
office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense. It discusses the draft
final report and comes with a list of possible questions and answers
regarding the deployment of Ospreys and response guidelines.

The document titled "GOJ Input to Relocation of MCAS Futenma" notes:
"The following input was provided by Mr. Takamizawa of the JDA to
USFJ/Defense Plans Department."

It also notes this about the replacement facility: "Some of the
helicopters are scheduled to be replaced by Ospreys around 2003."
The answer to a possible question is designed not to mention the
deployment plan specifically, specifying, "Even if the MV-22 is
picked as the follow-on model in the future, the aircraft is said to
be operational under the same conditions."

"Although we cannot deny the possibility of [the U.S. military]
deploying [Ospreys] in the future, we hear that nothing has been
determined specifically," is the government's current answer at the
Diet. It is in line with the list of possible questions and
answers.

(2) Government starts negotiations with U.S. on change of helipad
installation site near village in Futenma relocation plan

OKINAWA TIMES (Page 1) (Full)
April 22, 2009

Shin Yoshida, Shogo Yotsue

The Japanese government unofficially asked the U.S. government to
change the planned installation site for a helipad on the
southwestern side of the coastal area of Camp Schwab in Henoko, Nago
City, to which the U.S. Marine Corp's Futenma AIR Station is to be
transferred. Among the four planned installation sites for helipads,
only the site on the southwestern side is located near Henoko
village. Japan and the U.S. have already started coordination at the
working level, according to informed sources yesterday. The plan to
install helipads at the alternative facility is included in a
document concerning procedures for conducting the environmental
impact assessment whose copies the Okinawa Defense Bureau presented
to Kure and other relevant communities on April 1. Nago and other
communities have reacted strongly to the helipad-installation plan.

A senior government official said: "Local communities are only
worried about one location close to a village. The number of
helipads will not be reduced from four to three, but changing the
location in question should be possible through talks with the U.S.
side." The official indicated a positive view about changing the
installation site.

The government has already notified the relevant prefectural and
municipal governments of a plan to start talks on changing the
location. The helipads to be installed at the facility will be used
for helicopters' vertical takeoff and landing practices. At Futenma
Air Station, there are seven helipads, and the U.S. military has
asked Japan to move four of them to the new facility.

The procedure document includes the results of assessments of noise
generated during hovering flights of Ch-53, CH-46, UH-1, and AH-1 --

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rotary-wing models that generate the highest levels of noise -- at
Futenma and nine adjacent areas.

Noise levels over 70 decibels (dB) are regarded as bothersome to the
majority of people. On the assumption of helipads installed at four
sites, the expected peak noise level was 78.1 dB in Henoko Port,
74.5 dB on a hill in Henoko, 73.7 dB in Henoko village, and 72.4 dB
at National Okinawa Industrial High School Vocational School.

Nago Mayor Yoshikazu Shimabukuro expressed his opposition to the
plan in a meeting of the Relocation Council on April 8, saying: "The
residents have called on the government to move the construction
site further offshore, stemming from a desire to reduce aircraft
noise. The helipad-installation plan goes against their wishes.

(3) Yachi's comment on return of 3.5 islands creating stir;
Government desperate to cap it

NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full)
April 22, 2009

A newspaper reported the comment by Shotaro Yachi, government
representative and former administrative vice foreign minister, in
which he suggested that Japan should resolve the dispute over the
four Russian-held islands off northeastern Hokkaido by having Russia
return 3.5 islets. With Yachi's comment, debate on measures to
resolve the dispute is now picking up momentum. Although the
government has upheld a policy of having all four islands returned
as a package, it appears to have a desire to find a breakthrough in
the deadlocked situation. With an eye on a visit to Japan by Russian
Premier Vladimir Putin in May, there is also an aspect that the
Japanese government is observing how Russia will act. Therefore, it
remains to be seen if Yachi's call for the return of 3.5 islets will
lead to a breakthrough in the territorial dispute.

"The remark by Mr. Yachi is extremely serious. Even an influential
Russian newspaper carried his comment," said Yukihisa Goto, a
Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) member, in a session yesterday of
the House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. Goto
made Yachi the target of his criticism. Foreign Minister Hirofumi
Nakasone reiterated: "As I think that his remark is serious, I
reprimanded him." However, there are no signs of resolving the
situation.

The Mainichi Shimbun carried an article about an interview with
Yachi, in which he revealed the idea of having Russia return the
Kunashiri Island, the Habomai islet group and part of the Etorofu
Island of the four disputed islands. The idea is that Japan and
Russia should equally divide the entire areas of the four islands.
Prime Minister Taro Aso, during his tenure as foreign minister,
mentioned the return of three islets and the idea of splitting the
total landmass of the four islands into two, but he later retracted
his suggestions.

The Foreign Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office are desperate
to put a cap on the matter. Yachi turned home from the United States
yesterday afternoon. He told reporters at Narita Airport: "I didn't
say so." However, he added: "I feel that some of my remarks might
have caused misunderstanding."

Yachi served as administrative vice minister under then Foreign
Minister Aso. It was said that the appointment of Yachi as

TOKYO 00000941 004 OF 005


government representative was aimed to strengthen efforts to deal
with the issue of the Northern Territories. This is the reason why
many observers say that Yachi's comment is believed to reflect Aso's
wishes.

In the past, various measures were floated to resolve the
territorial row. For example, the so-called "Kawana proposal," in
which then Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto told then President
Boris Yeltsin that the northern border should be drawn between
Ostrov Urup and the Etorofu Island, while accepting the situation of
the four islands. The government's position is that it will deal
flexibly with the issue once the ownership of the four islands is
resolved. Various measures to resolve the issue follow the extension
of that argument.

However, since Russia has turned down Japan's any proposals, the
negotiations have been stalled. Under such circumstance, the idea of
dividing the whole areas of the four islands has often been talked
about.

Russia, too, has reacted to Yachi's comment. The Russian newspaper,
Kommersant, reported in detail the contents of his comment and the
explanations by Nakasone and other government officials. The
newspaper also carried an article referring to Aso's suggestion
during his tenure as foreign minister.

ITAR-TASS dispatched an expert view from Tokyo yesterday: "There
seems to be no doubt that Yachi made the remark intentionally, all
the more because he is a close aide to Aso." In his summit with
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Aso called on Medvedev to present
a reply by their next summit. However, whether Yachi's comment will
have an impact on the next summit is unknown. Many observers view
that since Russia's top priority in bilateral talks with Japan is
economic cooperation, the possibility is low that Russia will
seriously deal with the territorial issue.

(4) U.S. gives up on building reprocessing plant, casting pall on
nuclear fuel cycle

ASAHI (Page 3) (Excerpts)
April 22, 2009

Toshihiko Katsuta, Eisuke Sasaki, Washington

The U.S. has given up on a plan to build a spent nuclear-fuel
reprocessing plant and a fast-breeder reactor due to questions about
and opposition to spending huge amounts of money without a clear
outlook on the realization of nonproliferation. A test run of
Japan's reprocessing plant for commercial use is already underway,
and Japan was set to extend technical cooperation to the U.S.
However, Japan is also saddled with a mountain of challenges ahead,
such as construction costs and technical problems.

Japan has same difficulties: Multiple problems during test run

Experts say that the advantage of reprocessing spent nuclear fuel is
that nuclear waste can be reduced through the effective use of
resources - extracted plutonium. Japan has adopted the nuclear fuel
cycle as it basic nuclear policy and is the only non-nuclear weapon
state that is authorized to reprocess spent nuclear fuel for
commercial use.


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Concerning Washington's policy switch, a senior Natural Resources
and Energy Agency official said, "This will not affect Japan's
policy." The energy self-sufficiency rate of Japan and France, which
have been tackling spent nuclear fuel reprocessing for commercial
use, is low. This official takes the view that the situation in
Japan is different from that of the U.S., which developed the plan
in 2006.

However, Japan faces problems common to the reason that has made the
U.S. switch its policy. Japan has technical challenges to overcome,
and the costs involved are enormous.

Japan spent 2.193 trillion yen for the construction of a
reprocessing plant in Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture. It is
estimated that reprocessing for the next 40 years will cost another
19 trillion yen. Utility companies are allocating some funds for
this purpose from electricity charges. Though the plant has started
a test run, full operations have are not yet underway due to a
number of difficulties in the waste disposal process. Problems with
domestic technology have emerged and repairing damages is also
time-consuming.

The process involving the fast breeder comes after reprocessing. The
present plan is to burn plutonium in a plutonium-thermal reactor at
an existing nuclear plant. However, the fuel-saving effect of this
method is small. If a fast breeder is used, it will be possible to
breed more fissionable materials than the amount of fuel spent.
Japan aims at putting this method into practical use by around 2050.
However, when using a fast breeder, handling the sodium used for
cooling becomes problematic. Operation of the fast breeder reactor
Monju has been suspended since 1995, when a sodium leak occurred.

It is viewed that the Obama administration will take a severe stance
on the construction of new nuclear facilities with nonproliferation
in mind. The government will start looking into a second
reprocessing plant, following the one in Rokkasho Village.

University of Tokyo Visiting Professor Tatsujiro Suzuki said, "The
U.S. policy switch could affect Japan over the long term if a plan
emerges to have multiple countries control nuclear fuel cycle
facilities."

Japan opted for a reprocessing and fast breeder reactor policy in
its nuclear policy guidelines adopted at a cabinet meeting in 2005.
However, if the stalled nuclear fuel cycle project, starting with
the construction of a reprocessing plant, becomes protracted and the
construction cost bloats, a call for revising the plan could flare
up again, as in the case of the U.S., which has decided to pull out
of the project to build reprocessing plant.

ZUMWALT