Prime Minister, President Clinton Agree Ties in “The Best Shape Ever”
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Japan Information and Culture Center, EMBASSY OF JAPAN PRIME MINISTER, PRESIDENT CLINTON AGREE TIES IN “THE BEST SHAPE EVER” Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi and President Clinton concluded the first official visit by a Prime Minister to Washington in 12 years on a high note. “Japan” the President said, “is a world P leader for all humanity.” For his part, Prime Minister Obuchi said “since the black ships appeared off our coast in 1853, our bilateral relationship is in the best shape ever.” The Prime Minister’s trip started in Los Angeles where he toured the QE II which brought him on his first visit to the U.S. as a youth. He then threw out the first pitch at a Cubs game at Wrigley field in Chicago. In Washington he was hosted at a White House dinner, met with legislators and business leaders, and with the secretary of the late Robert Kennedy, who arranged a meeting 36 years ago between a young Obuchi, then a university student, and her boss, then Attorney General. The MAY 1999 summit talks covered the bilateral agenda and security matters as well as trade. The Prime Minister voiced support for U.S. efforts in 5 the Kosovo crisis, and pledged $200 million in aid for Kosovo CONTENTS refugees, afflicted nations and the restoration effort. The two leaders also endorsed various reports, including the Second Joint Status Summit linked to many initiatives Report on Deregulation and the report of the Working Group on The Prime Minister brought new Investment. “I explained to the President that Japan is swiftly and security guidelines and aid for North Korea; forgiving foreign debt, boldly taking every measure in order to address the difficulties we WTO talks in Tokyo. 2 are facing,” Mr. Obuchi said, which aims at a “major turnaround” of Science Watch the Japanese economy. “We will soon regain vitality, we will achieve Technological innovation is recovery within 1999,” he said. Prime Minster Obuchi completed his transforming even standard appliances. 3 charm offensive in meetings with members of Congress, then flew Viewpoint home, drawing praise on Capitol Hill as he had at the White House. The time has come to rebuild the Japan-U.S. relationship in the new (see page 2) global economy. 4 Trends in Japan American gospel music is catching on in a big way; a seasonless culture? 6 Beyond Differences Basketmakers had to adjust to the changing needs of Japanese society. 7 Hirayama honored The Smithsonian recognizes great contributions to art preservation. 8 Prime Minister Obuchi and President Clinton greet one another during the welcoming ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, May 3. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) NEW SECURITY GUIDELINES LEGISLATION APPROVED Just in time for the Obuchi-Clinton summit, the lower house of the Diet approved a set of bills enhancing Japan's security arrangements with the United States and J its role in safeguarding regional security. Prime Minister Obuchi, center, smiles while wearing a Chicago Cubs baseball cap The new guidelines, the first update of the given to him by Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa, right, May 1, in Chicago. Prime Minister Obuchi later threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the start of the Cubs Japan-U.S. defense guideline since 1978, allow game against the San Diego Padres. (AP Photo/Osamu Honda/POOL) Japanese self-defense forces to provide greater assistance to American troops in the area surrounding presence in Japan, the largest host-nation-support Japan. Some 47,000 American troops serve in payment of any of America’s allies. Japan under the 1960 security treaty and other North Korea’s firing of a missile over Japan related bilateral defense arrangements. last August and Asia’s financial crisis have raised Under the guidelines, set down in 1997, in the threat of greater instability in the region. Beyond the event of a regional crisis, Japan's Self Defense the new guidelines the two allies are working jointly Forces will help with rear support, search and res- on research of a missile-defense system. cue, and evacuations. The guideline will give the U.S. access to Japanese logistical expertise and in support of U.S. missions in the region. A BILLION FOR NORTH KOREA The upper house of Parliament approved the During the Prime Minister’s visit to the United legislation in a largely symbolic vote May 24. Japan States, the Japanese government signed an bears $5.4 billion a year to support the American agreement to provide 116.5 billion yen (yen equivalet to US $1 billion as of October 20, 1980) to the international consortium, the Korean THE U.S.-JAPAN COMMON AGENDA Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO), set up to build two nuclear reactors for Promoting Health and Human Development peaceful use by North Korea. KEDO is planning to • Women in Development spend $4.6 billion to provide two light-water • Population and health nuclear reactors to North Korea under a 1994 • Global food supply accord designed to deter Pyongyang from developing • Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases nuclear weapons. The Prime Minister’s decision Responding to Challenges to Global Stability was a difficult one after North Korea fired a missile • Counter-narcotics in August across Japanese airspace into the Pacific. • Counter-terrorism • Natural and man-made disaster reduction • Civil society and democratization NEW PLAN FOR DEBT RELIEF Protecting the Global Environment • Conservation AND DEVELOPMENT • Development assistance for the environment On April 28, The Government of Japan announced • Global change research a comprehensive plan for development and debt • Global Change Reasearch and Prediction relief for heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs). • Environmental and energy-efficient technologies The announcement is based upon the recognition • Environmental education that the time has come for the international JAPAN JAPAN Advancing Science and Technology community to further enhance the existing efforts NOWNOW • Civil industrial technology to alleviate the continued severity of the debt • Transportation problems faced by these countries. 2 • Educational technology for the 21st century The newly announced plan for G7 action, which builds upon Japan's previous efforts, calls for improving and enhancing existing measures under the HIPCs initiative, giving full SCIENCE WATCH consideration to the principle of fair burden sharing among creditor countries and international financial institutions. The plan includes proposals to increase the current Paris Club debt relief ceiling of 67% for bilateral ODA loans to 100% COOL NEW PRODUCTS (Japan will provide grant assistance for debt Domestic appliances, such as refrigerators relief, a measure which effectively results in the and washing machines, are often called cancellation of debt), to go beyond the debt relief C “mature products,” those considered to ceiling of 80% for non-ODA claims as necessary have evolved technologically as far as they can go. and to enhance international financial institutions' In Japan, however, new priorities and technological debt relief measures for loans extended to HIPCs. prowess are producing exciting new domestic Under the plan, the extension of debt appliances. Among these, refrigerators in particular relief measures is made conditional upon the have been changing drastically. recipient countries' active efforts to effect Japanese consumers want refrigerators that structural reform with positive outcomes. Also, hold more, take up less space, are energy efficient, indebted countries must develop the necessary and are easy to use. Over the past several years human resources in order to improve their competition has intensified among manufacturers, debt-management capacity so that debt relief resulting in more energy-efficient products. measures extended by donors can have the Improvements in ease of use have also been striking. maximum effect. Donors should positively provide Some of the biggest improvements have been in technical cooperation to facillitate this. the layout of refrigerator compartments. As the top provider of ODA, Japan has Traditionally, the freezer compartment has been on been making strenuous efforts to bring about the top, the refrigerator compartment in the middle, economic and social development of recipient and the vegetable compartment on the bottom. In countries. It considers that long-term, low 1990, however, Toshiba Corp. came out with a interest ODA loans, which enhance the principle model that had the refrigerator compartment on of ownership, have been contributing to the top, the freezer in the middle, and the vegetable development of many countries, and that initiatives bin on the bottom. Placing the freezer at waist must be based on the principle that HIPCs take height made it easier to get to frozen foods. This responsibility for and assume ownership of the was a big hit with consumers. problems they face. Then in 1996, Hitachi Ltd. came out with a model that had the vegetable compartment in the middle and the freezer on the bottom. This layout TRADE TALKS IN TOKYO made it possible to get to items in the vegetable Senior trade officials of Japan, the U.S., the compartment without bending over, and is becoming European Union and Canada met in Tokyo on May one of Japan’s most popular refrigerator styles. 11 and 12 to discuss how to format a new round of A variable-temperature compartment is world trade talks scheduled to start later this year in now fast becoming a standard feature. It can be set Seattle. They had a candid and vigorous exchange on five temperatures allowing consumers to match of views and agreed on various issues including the their refrigerators’ functions to their own menus following points: that the new round of negotiation and eating habits. Mitsubishi Electric Corp. is should cover a wide range of agendas; that it is selling a refrigerator with a new “soft freeze,” that desirable to conclude the round in three years; and allows food to be cut with a knife without being that the active participation of developing countries defrosted.