The news today is that the Abe Cabinet, while apparently still respecting the 1993 Kono statement on the 'comfort women' issue, will not issue another apology, even if the US Congress passes a resolution calling for Japan to apologize.As suggested by two articles in South Korea's Chosun Ilbo -- found here and here -- Abe's …
Tag: US-Japan relations
Yomiuri on Sunday
A couple articles caught my eye in today's edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun, both of which appear to be unavailable online. (Articles from Sunday's paper never seem to be posted online.)The first was an interview with US Japan hand Michael Green, focused on the "comfort women" resolution, the title of which summarizes the interview fairly …
Negroponte chides Congress
The Japan Times reports that US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte has criticized Congress for the comfort women resolution, saying, "Our view is what happened during the war was most deplorable. But as far as some kind resolution of this issue (is concerned), this is something that must be dealt with between Japan and …
The US Congress, thought police?
So Prime Minister Abe has commented upon the US House Resolution 121 -- the so-called "comfort women resolution" -- currently under debate in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.The resolution states that Japan(1) should formally acknowledge, apologize, and accept historical responsibility in a clear and unequivocal manner for its Imperial Armed Force's coercion of young …
Step back, Mr. Prime Minister
I want to call attention to Prime Minister Abe's email magazine from last week, in which he discusses seeing a performance by Noel Paul Stookey, onetime member of Peter, Paul, and Mary, of his new song "Song for Megumi," about Yokota Megumi, poster child of the abductions issue.Simply put, Abe's note shows just how far …
Dissecting the second Armitage-Nye Report, part 3
This is the third of three posts looking at the contents of the newly released second Armitage-Nye Report (the first two can be found here and here). An article about the report can be read here from the FT, which remains the best international English-language source of Japan-related news. (And the report can be downloaded …
Continue reading Dissecting the second Armitage-Nye Report, part 3
Now, the waiting game
So the six-party talks have produced a tentative agreement -- although it seems that there's no sign of a timeline, and at this point all North Korea has agreed to do is close the Yongbyon reactor that has apparently fuelled its nuclear weapons program, with no mention of what happens to North Korea's existing arsenal.Japan …
No surprise here
The Japan Times is reporting here that Vice President Cheney will not be meeting Defense Minister Kyuma when he visits Japan later this month.This was all too expected, being entirely consistent with how the Bush administration has dealt with critics throughout its tenure.Not really much more to say here, other than that this is another …
Second time farce…
An embattled George Bush in the White House, a Democratic Congress riled up about Japanese practices to give itself an unfair advantage in international economic competition...is it 2007 or 1992?But seriously, as this FT article reports, Congress is pushing hard for Secretary Paulson to join with European governments to pressure Japan to raise interest rates …
Japan’s multilateral blues
Yesterday I wrote about rising concerns that Japan will be criticized regarding the cheap yen at the G7 meeting this weekend in Germany; Japan, however, may also be running into trouble at the six-party talks due to restart this week in Beijing.This article in the FT hints at growing signs that Washington is increasingly open …
Tobias S. Harris 