Maehara to visit Washington, Florida from Jan. 6+

TOKYO, Dec. 28 Kyodo -
Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara said Tuesday he will make a five-day trip to the
United States from Jan. 6, visiting Washington and Florida for talks with U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and new Florida Governor Rick Scott.
The trip to Washington is aimed at laying the groundwork for Prime Minister
Naoto Kan's U.S. visit next spring, during which the Japanese leader is
expected to release a joint statement with U.S. President Barack Obama on
deepening the bilateral security alliance, the foreign minister said.
Maehara told a press conference that as Kan and Obama have agreed to boost
bilateral ties by strengthening cooperation in the areas of security, the
economy, and cultural and human exchanges, he will discuss with Clinton
''specific measures'' to fulfill the accord.
The foreign minister said he will also reaffirm with Clinton that the countries
negotiating with North Korea in the six-party talks -- South Korea, the United
States, Japan, China and Russia -- will urge Pyongyang to take ''concrete
steps'' toward denuclearization.
Maehara, Clinton and South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Kim Sung
Hwan condemned the North's deadly shelling of a South Korean island on Nov. 23
and confirmed unity in dealing with the country during their meeting in
Washington earlier this month.
The Japanese foreign minister is expected to hold talks with Clinton possibly
on Jan. 7 and will meet with other U.S. government officials and make a speech
Jan. 6 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a U.S. think tank
in Washington.
''In my speech, I will stress the importance of the Japan-U.S. security
alliance and speak about how it can respond to global challenges,'' he said.
As for the planned relocation of a key U.S. Marine base within Okinawa, which
has strained Japan-U.S. ties, Maehara said he will urge Washington to agree to
implement steps to alleviate the base-hosting burden on local residents at an
early date when he meets with Clinton.
People in Okinawa remain strongly opposed to the transfer of the U.S. Marine
Corps' Futenma Air Station within the southern island prefecture, even though
Tokyo struck a fresh accord with Washington in May to move the facility within
Okinawa.
Maehara said he believes it is ''not productive for the base issue to sit at
the center of bilateral relations,'' hindering progress in other areas of
cooperation.
In Florida, where Scott will assume office on Jan. 4, Maehara will urge the
state to adopt Japan's shinkansen high-speed railway system, according to
sources close to Japan-U.S. relations.
It is still not clear whether the planned railway project in Florida will go
forward because the governor-elect has not come out explicitly in favor of the
plan, the sources said.
Scott won the gubernatorial election with the backing of the Tea Party
movement, which is opposed to spending taxpayers' money on the new railway
project.
The plan being pushed by the Obama administration calls for the construction of
a 135-kilometer rail line between Tampa and Orlando at a cost of around $2.6
billion in 2015, and then building another line between Orlando and Miami.
The Japanese consortium faces stiff competition from Europe and China in its
bid for the Florida project.
==Kyodo
2010-12-29 00:14:01


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