|
On March 4, Prime Minister and DPJ President Yukio Hatoyama spoke to reporters at the Prime Minister’s Office. Hatoyama was asked whether, if the facilities at Futenma were moved to a location within Okinawa Prefecture, the government would consider the option of lightening the burden on Okinawa by negotiating other conditions, such as a revision of the Japan State of Forces Agreement (SOFA). He responded clearly: “We are not considering such an option,” and added, “First we would like to make a firm decision on the location for the facilities at Futenma by May, and we anticipate that we will be able to progress onto discussing the SOFA in the discussions following this.”
A reporter said that the fact Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano had met with US Ambassador John Roos while the committee established by the Cabinet Office to consider the issue of US bases on Okinawa was still deliberating the matter suggested that the government was prioritizing negotiations with the US government. Hatoyama answered, “That is not the case. Rather, I believe that Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirano should meet with all kinds of people and work to gain mutual understanding. In a sense, this is something that ought to be carried out simultaneously with both sides [Okinawa Prefecture and the US].”
Asked when he would like to finalise a government proposal on the matter so as to enable negotiations with the US to take place and to decide on a location for the Futenma facilities by the end of May, Hatoyama said, “I would like to decide as soon as possible. I think that it would be satisfactory if we are able to come up with a government proposal sometime during March.”
Next, Hatoyama commented on the fact that a meeting had been held by DPJ Diet members calling for the revival of the party’s Policy Research Committee, which had been disbanded upon the DPJ government taking office. He expressed the following basic position: “I believe that if we are able to create an environment that enhances the role of the policy committees and enables [Diet members] to express their opinions and have these reflected [in government policy] that ought to be sufficient.” He added, “We will also establish a consultative committee for the Manifesto, and so I hope that we will be able to discuss short-term, abstract, and mid to long term [policy directions] in parallel in these two forums [the policy committees and the Manifesto consultative committee]”
Finally, Hatoyama was asked whether he intended to review the portion of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles that states Japan will not “permit [the] introduction” of nuclear weapons into her territory. This comes in the wake of news that a committee of experts established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to investigate the so-called “secret agreements” looks set to publish a report stating that “there was an unspoken agreement between Japan and the United States”, thereby acknowledging that some part of these agreements did exist.
Hatoyama responded clearly, “I have absolutely no intention of doing so. Not permitting the introduction of nuclear weapons into Japan means not permitting their introduction: that is [part of] the Non-Nuclear Principles, and we should abide by it. Since we are aiming for a nuclear-free world, I think that [strictly abiding by the Non-Nuclear Principles] is a matter of commonsense.”
|
