July 10, 1999
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| July 10, 1999 | atimes.com | |
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| Japan Japan asks China's help in dissuading N.Korea BEIJING - Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi on Friday sought Chinese cooperation in dissuading North Korea from launching any more ballistic missiles. ''I received information about North Korean preparations for another missile test, and I am deeply concerned about the possibility of such an action,'' the Japanese leader was quoted by a Foreign Ministry official as telling Premier Zhu Rongji. ''North Korea's relationship with Japan, the U.S. and South Korea will be considerably set back if a missile is launched,'' Obuchi said. ''Stability on the Korean Peninsula, which is in China's interest, will be undermined,'' he stressed. ''I would ask China to exert greater influence on North Korea,'' Obuchi told Zhu. Zhu was quoted by the Japanese official as replying, ''We shall try to do whatever we can do.'' He added, ''We would welcome a normalization of relations between North Korea and Japan, the U.S. and the European Union.'' He also told Obuchi, ''No concerned party should act in a way detrimental to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula." Regarding Japanese legislation for closer defense cooperation with the U.S., Obuchi stressed Japan will seek to apply the laws in ways that would not offend China. ''We shall pay attention to maintaining friendly ties with China as one of the key national interests,'' he said. As for China's concern over whether or not Taiwan is within the scope of the Japan-U.S. defense guidelines, Obuchi reiterated that ''these laws are not aimed at specific countries or regions.'' Beijing has grown nervous about the possible inclusion of Taiwan within the scope of the guidelines. Obuchi called the difficulty Japanese banks have in recovering loans to failed Chinese nonbanks ''a serious economic issue between the two nations.'' He asked Zhu to take action to improve the situation of Japanese companies operating in China, which are having difficulty in procuring steel products and other materials, due to China's import regulations. The two prime ministers confirmed that their nations have reached agreement in negotiations over China's admission to the World Trade Organization, Japanese officials said. (Asia Pulse/Nikkei) | |||||||||
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