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Viewing cable 06TOKYO3523, JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 06/26/06

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06TOKYO3523 2006-06-26 01:32 2011-08-25 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Tokyo
VZCZCXRO9895
PP RUEHFK RUEHKSO RUEHNAG RUEHNH
DE RUEHKO #3523/01 1770132
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 260132Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3649
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/USDOJ WASHDC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/USDOT WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J5//
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMHBA/COMPACFLT PEARL HARBOR HI
RHMFIUU/HQ PACAF HICKAM AFB HI//CC/PA//
RHMFIUU/COMUSJAPAN YOKOTA AB JA//J5/JO21//
RUYNAAC/COMNAVFORJAPAN YOKOSUKA JA
RUAYJAA/COMPATWING ONE KAMI SEYA JA
RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 9509
RUEHFK/AMCONSUL FUKUOKA 6897
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 0167
RUEHNAG/AMCONSUL NAGOYA 6801
RUEHKSO/AMCONSUL SAPPORO 8047
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2965
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 9115
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0883
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TOKYO 003523 
 
SIPDIS 
 
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 06/26/06 
 
 
Index: 
 
1) Top headlines 
2) Editorials 
Prime Minister's weekend, daily schedules: None 
 
US-Japan ties: 
3) Prime Minister Koizumi to meet President Bush on June 29, play up 
bilateral alliance 
4) Japan remains mum about US-India nuclear accord 
 
Defense & security topics: 
5) Japan begins troop pullout from Iraq 
6) USFJ plans PAC-3 deployment to Okinawa this year 
7) Tokyo agrees with US to outlay 1.0-1.2 billion dollars for 
missile defense shield 
8) Antimissile test successful off Hawaii 
9) US nuclear submarines make more visits in Japan 
 
US beef: 
10) US sanctions bill over beef "nonsense": farm minister 
11) MOFA minister negative about all-out embargo on US beef even 
after another single erroneous RSM shipment to Japan 
 
Opinion polls: 
12) 60% won't eat US beef, 70% opposed to import resumption: 
Yomiuri-NTT online poll 
13) Yomiuri poll shows only 16% want next prime minister to take 
over Prime Minister Koizumi's structural reforms, down 10 points 
 
Ex-CCS Fukuda in Jakarta: 
14) Ex-CCS Fukuda in Jakarta announces his own Asia policy, seeks to 
improve ties with China, ROK 
15) Fukuda asks Indonesian president to work on North Korea's Kim 
Jong Il over missile threat 
 
Foreign affairs: 
16) Taepodong missile launch a violation of Pyongyang declaration: 
CCS Abe 
17) DPJ President Ozawa to visit China next month, meet with 
President Hu 
18) Japan to advocate small arms nonproliferation at United Nations 
 
 
Articles: 
 
1) TOP HEADLINES 
 
Asahi: 
Poll of 100 major companies: 97 firms say ongoing economic expansion 
is "likely to be longest," upbeat about the economy due to recovery 
in consumption 
 
Mainichi: 
Minshuto (DPJ) head Ozawa intends to urge DPJ lawmaker Matsui to 
resign over involvement in Murakami Fund, will pressure BOJ Gov. 
Fukui to resign 
 
Yomiuri: 
Governing coalition plan to cut annual spending by 11.5-14.5 
trillion yen, allocate 170 billion yen for social welfare benefits 
 
 
TOKYO 00003523  002 OF 010 
 
 
Nihon Keizai: 
Economy expanding at steady pace, helped by domestic demand; 
Virtuous cycle of investment and consumption, but the outlook for US 
economy, falling stock prices remain as matters of concern 
 
Sankei: 
Liver transplant involving foreigner: Pakistani donor under 
suspicion of attempting to sell his organ; Incident forces Kyoto 
University to adopt more strict ethical rules 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
Delay in discovery of solitary deaths of those aged from 40 to 64; 
50% of those discovered more than 8 days after their deaths in 23 
wards in Tokyo in 2004 
 
2) EDITORIALS 
 
Asahi: 
(1) Misuse of research funds damages the public trust 
(2) UN Human Rights Council: Need to depart from "conflicts of 
culture" 
 
Mainichi: 
(1) Cut in government expenditures: Proponents should fulfill their 
responsibility 
(2) Misuse of research funds: Preventive measures more important 
than promoting whistle-blowing 
 
Yomiuri: 
(1) Manufacturing White Paper: Shortened season is a headache 
(2) UN Human Rights Council: Abduction issue will be a test of its 
ability 
 
Nihon Keizai: 
Strategic change of president will put companies on way to growth 
 
Sankei: 
(1) Family murder: Boy's thinking must be illuminated 
(2) Anti-cancer measures: National strategic viewpoint necessary 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
(1) General shareholders' meetings: Stockholders need to voice their 
views 
(2) Biomass energy: Energy conservation via plants 
 
3) Koizumi, Bush to meet on June 29, highlight unity of Japan, US in 
first joint statement in five years 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 25, 2006 
 
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will set out on a trip to wind up 
his diplomatic schedule. He will leave Japan on June 27 for Canada 
and the United States. In July, he is scheduled to attend the St. 
Petersburg Summit. In their meeting on June 29, Prime Minister 
Koizumi and US President Bush will issue a joint statement 
underscoring that Japan and the US, with the common values of 
freedom and democracy, will cooperate in every area, based on the 
alliance in a global context. Koizumi intends to play up the unity 
of Japan and the US in the summit. 
 
The upcoming trip to the US will be the first official visit for a 
 
TOKYO 00003523  003 OF 010 
 
 
Japanese prime minister since Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi went in 
ΒΆ1999. Given their personal relationship of trust, President Bush has 
arranged to treat Koizumi like a state guest in the final days of 
his office as prime minister. In addition to various welcome events 
in Washington, Koizumi will visit the home of singer Elvis Presley 
in Tennessee with Bush. The prime minister's birthday is the same as 
Presley's. 
 
The two leaders will issue their first joint statement since their 
first summit in June 2001, immediately after Koizumi assumed office. 
The statement will stress that Japan and the US will join hands in 
dealing with various tasks facing the international community, 
including terrorism and natural disasters, following the dispatch of 
Self-Defense Force troops to Iraq and the agreement the two 
countries reached on plans for US force realignment in Japan. 
 
It has been reported that North Korea could be ready to test-fire a 
long-range ballistic missile. Tokyo and Washington are making 
arrangements for the two leaders to call on Pyongyang not to carry 
out the test-firing, expressing concerns that a missile launch would 
bring about a serious situation. Prime Minister Koizumi is expected 
to ask President Bush that Japan and the US work on other major 
countries to cooperate in persuading the North to completely abandon 
its nuclear arms program and resolving the issue of Japanese 
nationals abducted by North Korean agents. 
 
There are issues on which the two sides do not agree, though. Over 
Iran's uranium enrichment activities, the US has unofficially asked 
Japan to consider invoking financial sanctions against that nation, 
but the Japanese government has supported a project to develop a new 
oil field in Iran, given that Japan imports 13.8% of its oil from 
that country. 
 
Based on the view that the summit is not a proper time for Japan to 
be pressed to reveal its attitude, the Foreign Ministry hopes that 
both sides will agree on a plan to urge Iran to swiftly accept a 
package of rewards for ending its nuclear program. 
 
In the event that President Bush strongly urges Japan to consider 
sanctions, however, Japan will find it difficult to make a judgment 
on a matter of foreign policy that will have to be undertaken by the 
next prime minister. 
 
The agreement on nuclear energy reached between the US and India is 
also bothersome for Japan. India has yet to join the Nuclear 
Non-Proliferation Treaty but is a nuclear weapons state. Under the 
agreement, the US would provide India with nuclear technology for 
civilian applications. Some countries concerned are worried that the 
agreement might gut the NPT. Japan may have no choice but to express 
a qualified consent. 
 
4) Japan not to announce endorsement of US-India nuclear agreement 
during upcoming Japan-US summit 
 
ASAHI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
If during the upcoming Japan-US summit, the United States urges 
Japan to declare its endorsement of the nuclear agreement recently 
reached between the US and India, Japan will not give a clear-cut 
endorsement but refer it as a subject "to which it will give 
positive consideration." This policy direction is being coordinated 
 
TOKYO 00003523  004 OF 010 
 
 
in the government. Lying behind this move is the fact there are no 
prospects in sight for the US Congress to ratify the agreement, or 
for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to decide on 
safeguard measures by the time of the Japan-US summit. This policy 
direction, though, implies that Japan will endorse the agreement in 
the months ahead if the conditions are met. 
 
If the US-India nuclear agreement crops up as a subject during the 
Japan-US summit, the prime minister will point out that India shares 
the common value of democracy and is an important country for both 
Japan and the US. The prime minister will not oppose the agreement, 
given (1) the need to cope with India's growing energy demand owing 
to its rapid economic growth and  (2) the possibility that the 
agreement will lead to bringing India to the nuclear 
non-proliferation system. 
 
The prime minister, however, will not endorse the agreement. The 
reasons are, for instance, (1) the US Congress has yet to come up 
with a conclusion; and (2) no specific safeguard measures have been 
decided at the IAEA, so the possibility is not ruled out that 
civilian technology will be converted for military use. 
 
5) GSDF troops start pulling out from Iraq, transferring vehicles 
from Iraq to Kuwait 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 26, 2006 
 
Kazuki Kagatani, Bahrain 
 
The Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops stationed in Iraq's 
southern city of Samawah yesterday started withdrawing from Iraq. 
The transfer of vehicles from the GSDF camp to a place outside Iraq 
has now begun. This transfer has been entrusted to a private 
company. The company's large trailers carrying 17 vehicles, such as 
light armored vehicles, large and medium-sized trucks, and other 
trucks, crossed the border and entered Kuwait yesterday morning 
(evening of the same day, Japan time). 
 
Because of a succession of terrorist incidents on the way from 
Samawah to Kuwait, the overland transportation by a dozen large 
trailers was carried out while being surrounded by armed private 
security guards, and the Japanese flag was removed from the cargo. 
The transportation this time was limited to military-related goods 
and materials. Upon the completion of the transportation of those 
goods and materials, GSDF troops will move out from Samawah as early 
as late July and will head for Kuwait aboard C-130s. 
 
Vehicles that were transported this time will be kept at civilian 
warehouses. In order to help the withdrawal process, an assistance 
unit that will be dispatched shortly to Kuwait will start the 
procedures for marine transportation. 
 
6) USFJ to deploy PAC-3 to Okinawa within the year 
 
YOMIURI (Page 1) (Abridged) 
June 26, 2006 
 
The United States told Japan in an intergovernmental consultative 
meeting of working-level officials from the two countries in Hawaii 
on June 17 that the US military plans to deploy Patriot Advanced 
Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air guided missiles to Okinawa 
 
TOKYO 00003523  005 OF 010 
 
 
Prefecture within the year, officials revealed. PAC-3 missiles will 
be deployed to the US Air Force's Kadena Base, which is located 
across the town of Kadena and some other municipalities in Okinawa, 
or otherwise to the Kadena Ammunition Depot, a US military facility 
located in the city of Okinawa and other municipalities in the 
island prefecture, according to the officials. The planned 
deployment of PAC-3 missiles to Okinawa is in anticipation of North 
Korean and other foreign ballistic missiles, and US Forces Japan 
will deploy PAC-3s for the first time. The US Army is expected to 
station 500-600 additional troops in Okinawa. The US military is 
expected to deploy about four PAC-3 launchers in Okinawa. The 
Japanese government will basically agree on the PAC-3 deployment to 
Okinawa. 
 
7) Japan, US exchange notes on Japan's payment of 1-1.2 billion 
dollars for joint development of next-generation missile defense 
over nine years 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
Foreign Minister Taro Aso and US Ambassador to Japan Thomas 
Schieffer yesterday exchanged notes on joint development of the 
next-generation Aegis-based standard missile (SM3), on which Japan 
and the United States had engaged in joint technological development 
in pursing missile defense. The notes they exchanged state that 
Japan will pay 1-1.2 billion dollars over the next nine years. The 
joint development will start this fiscal year. As the condition that 
this joint development should be excluded from the three principles 
banning weapons exports, the two countries also exchanged the notes 
urging the US to keep the missile under strict control. 
 
8) US, Japan successfully conduct missile intercept test; Cautious 
views prevalent about using the system against Taepodong 
 
SANKEI (Abridged slightly) 
June 24, 2006 
 
Takashi Arimoto, Washington 
 
The United States has successfully conducted a sea-based ballistic 
missile intercept test off Hawaii, a US Defense Department Missile 
Defense Agency official announced on June 22. Although the official 
denied any connection between the test and North Korea's 
preparations to launch a Taepodong-2 ballistic missile, the first 
ballistic intercept testing involving Japan's Maritime Self-Defense 
Force was obviously aimed at demonstrating US deterrence against 
ballistic missiles. But cautious views are also heard in the US 
government about using this system, which is still in the process of 
development, against North Korea's Taepodong-2 missiles. 
 
The event marked the seventh successful intercept in the eight 
flight tests of the sea-based Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense 
System. A mock enemy missile was successfully intercepted by a 
Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) interceptor missile fired by the USS 
Shiloh, scheduled to be deployed at Yokosuka Base in Kanagawa 
Prefecture. The MSDF's Aegis vessel Kirishima, equipped with 
high-performance radar, also successfully tracked the enemy missile. 
Japanese and US Aegis vessels are equipped with an 
intelligence-sharing system. 
 
Missile Defense Agency Director Henry Obering released a statement 
 
TOKYO 00003523  006 OF 010 
 
 
underlining the significance of the joint US-Japan missile intercept 
testing, saying, "We have succeeded in testing extremely difficult 
technology." 
 
Japan and the US have been cooperating in gathering intelligence on 
North's Korea's preparations for launching a Taepodong-2 missile. 
The US military has also shifted the ground-based ballistic missiles 
deployed in Alaska and other places from test mode to combat mode. 
 
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld told a press conference on June 
 
SIPDIS 
22 regarding conditions for using the missile defense system: "The 
president will make a decision depending on whether or not a launch 
is a threat to US territory." 
 
The system has not been used in an actual combat. The prevalent view 
in the US government is that being at the stages of R&D and testing, 
the operational capability of the system is limited. 
 
On June 22, the Washington Post carried an article by Former Defense 
Secretary William Perry, who expressed his concern that a failure to 
 
SIPDIS 
intercept an enemy missile would undermine the value of the missile 
defense system. He also urged the Bush administration to make it 
clear that the US would resort to a preemptive strike if North Korea 
advanced its preparations for a Taepodong-2 missile launch. 
 
9) Nuclear submarines' port calls on the rise, possibly with North 
Korea in mind 
 
ASAHI (Page 38) (Abridged) 
June 26, 2006 
 
Port calls by the US Navy's nuclear-powered submarines at Sasebo 
Base in Nagasaki Prefecture and White Beach in Okinawa Prefecture 
have increased to the level of Yokosuka Base in Nakagawa Prefecture, 
the largest of the three ports. The number of port calls at Sasebo 
in the 2000-2005 period increased six-fold from the level of the 
1980s and that of White Beach a little less than five-fold. The US 
Navy has strengthened its patrols in the East China Sea and the Sea 
of Japan by bearing in mind China's military buildup and North 
Korea's development of ballistic missiles. The US Navy is believed 
to have increased its submarines' port calls at Sasebo and White 
Beach as hub ports. 
 
Local governments usually notify the Foreign Ministry about any port 
calls by US nuclear-powered submarines. Yokosuka City, Sasebo City, 
and the Okinawa prefectural governments have been tabulating such 
calls. 
 
According to their records, US nuclear submarines made an average 28 
port calls a year during the 1980s, 48 calls during the 1990s, and 
49 calls in the 2000, showing an increase in the post-Cold War era. 
 
Of them, Sasebo accounted for three during the 1980s, 10 in the 
1990s, and 18 in the 2000s. White Beach's number also increased from 
3 to 11 to 14. Meanwhile, Yokosuka marked 22 in the 1980s, and 27 in 
the 1990s, but dropped to 28 in the 2000s. 
 
Port calls at Yokosuka accounted for 80% of the total in the 1980s, 
60% in the 1990s, and less than 40% in the 2000s, reducing the gap 
with Sasebo and White Beach. 
 
All nuclear-powered submarines that visited Japanese ports in the 
 
TOKYO 00003523  007 OF 010 
 
 
1980s were attack-type subs on missions to track former Soviet Union 
submarines in deep waters in the Pacific Ocean, according to US Navy 
sources. From the late 1990s, the US Navy strengthened its 
surveillance of the Chinese military. The focus of their activities, 
including intelligence gathering and patrolling, has now shifted to 
the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, and South China Sea. 
 
According to the US Defense Department's Quadrennial Defense Review 
released in February, the US Navy plans to increase the ratio of 
nuclear-powered submarines in the Pacific from 40% to 60%. For this 
reason, US nuclear submarines are likely to visit Japanese ports 
more often. 
 
10) "US sanctions bill is meaningless," says agriculture minister 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 3) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
Commenting on the move in the US Senate to pass a bill calling for 
punitive tariffs on Japanese imports in the event that Tokyo fails 
to resume US beef imports at an early date, Agriculture, Forestry, 
and Fisheries Minister Shoichi Nakagawa during a speech given at the 
Japan Correspondents Club criticized it, noting, "It is nonsense to 
submit a punitive bill that sets a timeline at this time." 
 
11) Foreign minister negative toward imposing blanket embargo on US 
beef imports, even if SRM are found in resumed shipment 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
June 26, 2006 
 
Commenting on the response to a possible inclusion of specified risk 
materials (SRM) in a US beef shipment to Japan, Foreign Minister 
Taro Aso during an NHK TV talk show on June 26 indicated his 
perception that a blanket embargo should not be imposed on such an 
event. Noting that "the decision will depend on the situation," Aso 
noted: "An embargo should be imposed only on the meatpacker that has 
shipped products in violation of the agreement. It would not be fair 
to other meatpackers to impose a blanket ban." 
 
Regarding Prime Minister Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni Shrine, Aso 
reiterated his position that it is necessary to enshrine Class-A war 
criminals separately from other war dead, reviewing the status of 
Yasukuni Shrine as a religious institution. 
 
12) Poll: 60% say they will not eat US beef; 70% oppose resumption 
of US beef imports 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 26, 2006 
 
The Yomiuri Shimbun learned yesterday through an online survey that 
60% of respondents said that they did not want to eat US beef, 
imports of which will be resumed as early as late July. The Yomiuri 
conducted the poll yesterday along with NTT Resonant Communication. 
 
A total of 71% responded that they opposed the resumption of US beef 
imports or opposed it to a certain extent. Some 60% of this group 
cited doubts about the safety of US beef. Asked whether they would 
eat US beef after resuming beef imports, 61% replied that they would 
not or they would try not to. Some 96% said it should be a 
requirement to label the country of origin. 
 
TOKYO 00003523  008 OF 010 
 
 
 
The survey was conducted on June 19-20 when the governments of Japan 
and the United Stated agreed to Japan's resumption of US beef 
imports. A total of 1,059 (450 men and 609 women) consumer monitors 
between the ages of 14 to 84 responded to the survey. 
 
13) Poll: 16% say next prime minister should continue Koizumi reform 
drive; 78% concern about widening social gap 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Excerpts) 
June 24, 2006 
 
The Yomiuri Shimbun conducted a nationwide poll on June 17-18. Just 
16% said that the next prime minister should continue Prime Minister 
Junichiro Koizumi's reform drive, a 10-point drop from the February 
survey, while 56%, up 7 points, responded that the Koizumi reform 
programs should be continued after revisions. A total of 23%, up 5 
points from the previous survey, said that the Koizumi reform drive 
should not be maintained. 
 
Regarding supporters of the Koizumi government, only 25%, a drop of 
14 points from the previous survey, said that the next prime 
minister should continue the Koizumi reform drive. The main reason 
seems to be that people think that the Koizumi reform drive has 
widened social gaps, including an income gap, in the wake of arrests 
of Takafumi Horie, former president of Livedoor Co., and Yoshiaki 
Murakami, former representative of the Murakami Fund. 
 
A total of 78% said that they were seriously concerned about the 
widening income gap, with 21% not expressing concern. 
 
Asked whether they thought Japanese people would be able to overcome 
the social gap if they made efforts, 65%, a 7-point increase from 
the survey conducted in March, responded that they did not think 
they would be able to overcome the gaps. 
 
Regarding those who responded that they did not think the Koizumi 
reform drive should not maintained, 70% said they did not think they 
would be able to overcome the gaps. Among those who said that the 
Koizumi reforms should be continued, 56% responded that they did not 
think they would be able to overcome the social gaps. 
 
14) LDP's Fukuda stresses: Strained Japan-China and Japan-South 
Korea relations must be repaired 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
Hiroaki Matsunaga, Jakarta 
 
Yasuko Fukuda, a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) 
and a former chief cabinet secretary, revealed his own Asia policy 
in a speech at a seminar hosted by the Indonesia-Japan Friendship 
Association on the afternoon of June 23 (evening of the same day, 
Japan time). Fukuda seeks the economic integration of East Asian 
countries. In his speech, Fukuda advocated promotion of an Economic 
Partnership Agreement and other efforts. He then underscored that 
Japan, China, and South Korea would require wisdom and determination 
to break the impasse. 
 
Many observers see that although Fukuda has yet to announce his 
candidacy for September's LDP presidential election, the revelation 
 
TOKYO 00003523  009 OF 010 
 
 
of his own comprehensive foreign policy is an expression of his 
determination to run in the race. 
 
Fukuda delivered the speech as chairman of the Japan-Indonesia 
Friendship Association. He stressed that it's time to respond to the 
demands of the times, characterizing the Fukuda Doctrine advocated 
by his father, Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda, as having completed its 
historical duty. 
 
Specifically, Fukuda said that since economic unification has been 
pushed forward in East Asia, political will and determination are 
needed to move ahead with it, and a system will be necessary. He 
then sought for the acceleration of talks on an EPA. 
 
Fukuda also stressed: 
 
"Some have noted that the cool relations between Japan and China and 
between Japan and South Korea would prevent regional unification. 
The three countries' political wisdom and determination are required 
to break the deadlock." 
 
In his speech, Fukuda called on Koizumi to stop visiting Yasukuni 
Shrine. He stated that the common Asian senses of values like 
consideration would become the key to resolving issues surrounding 
resources and the environment. He expressed his hopes that China 
would share with other countries democracy, respect for human 
rights, and the rule of law. 
 
15) Fukuda calls on Indonesian president to work on General 
Secretary Kim regarding missile issue 
 
SIPDIS 
 
Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda on June 23 met with 
Indonesian President Yudhoyono at the President's Office in Jakarta 
and exchanged views on such issues as the situation in North Korea. 
With Yudhoyono's upcoming visit to Pyongyang to meet with General 
Secretary Kim in mind, Fukuda made this request: "I would like you 
 
SIPDIS 
to tell General Secretary Kim to cooperate for a settlement of such 
issues as his nation's nuclear development and abductions of 
Japanese nationals so that the Tokyo-Pyongyang Declaration can be 
implemented." 
 
Regarding North Korea's move to test-fire a Taepodong-2 long-range 
ballistic missile, too, Fukuda asked Yudhoyono, "I would like you to 
tell him that any action that poses a threat to the international 
community will never be understood." Referring to the economic 
relationship between Indonesia and Japan, Yudhoyono underscored, "I 
hope for private investment by Japan." He indicated his desire to 
sign an economic partnership agreement (EPA) with Japan before the 
end of the year. 
 
16) Abe: Taepodong-2 launch would be a violation of Pyongyang 
Declaration 
 
ASAHI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
The organ paper of the pro-Pyongyang General Association of Korean 
Residents in Japan (Chongryon) has reported in connection with a 
Taepodong-2 test launch that North Korea could launch a satellite at 
any time. Regarding such reports, Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe 
told a press conference on June 23: 
 
 
TOKYO 00003523  010 OF 010 
 
 
"If the North launched a ballistic missile that would directly 
affect the security of Japan, that would be a violation of the 
Japan-North Korea Pyongyang Declaration, no matter what the North 
calls it. That would conflict with the joint statement released 
after the six-party talks last September. A launch would have 
serious consequences for the peace and stability of Northeast 
Asia." 
 
17) Minshuto head Ozawa to visit China next month; Plans to meet 
with Chinese President Hu 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
June 24, 2006 
 
It was decided yesterday that Ichiro Ozawa, president of the main 
opposition party Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan), will visit 
China in July and meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao. Chinese 
Ambassador to Japan Wang Yi called on Ozawa at party headquarters 
and made a formal request of him for a visit to China, saying, "I 
would like you to visit China next month." Ozawa then accepted the 
offer, replying, "I really want to visit your country." Some of 
Ozawa's aides were concerned that if he visited Beijing before the 
September Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) presidential election, 
China, which has opposed Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits 
to Yasukuni Shrine, might take advantage of his visit. DPJ Secretary 
General Yukio Hatoyama, however, stressed: "We would like to make 
the Ozawa visit an opportunity to improve relations with China," 
given that summits between Koizumi and Hu have been suspended. Ozawa 
has made up his mind to visit China in July in a bid to pave the way 
for reconstructing bilateral relations. 
 
Ozawa will make an overseas trip for the first time since he assumed 
the presidency of the largest opposition party. He intends to play 
up his capability of assuming the political reins. He is expected to 
visit China before mid-July. 
 
Since Ozawa has expressed his view on the Yasukuni Shrine issue, 
which will become a major topic of discussion in his meeting with 
the Chinese president, that the war dead and Class-A war criminals 
should not enshrined the same place, there is no obstacle to his 
meeting with Hu. 
 
18) Government to propose setting guidelines for nonproliferation of 
small arms 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 26, 2006 
 
The government will propose establishing international guidelines 
for the prevention of the illegal distribution of guns and other 
weapons at the UN Small Arms Action Plan Implementation Review 
Conference, which is to meet in New York starting on June 26. In 
view of the fact that the proliferation of small arms due to illicit 
trade in such weapons has led to the prolongation of armed conflicts 
and terrorist activities, the government determined that it is 
necessary to strengthen monitoring of such trade worldwide. It will 
also underscore the importance of ties with nongovernmental 
organizations and assistance for efforts to reintegrate disarmed 
soldiers into society. 
 
DONOVAN