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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TOKYO 002336 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR E, P, EB, EAP/J, EAP/P, EAP/PD, PA 
WHITE HOUSE/NSC/NEC; JUSTICE FOR STU CHEMTOB IN ANTI-TRUST DIVISION; 
TREASURY/OASIA/IMI/JAPAN; DEPT PASS USTR/PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE; 
SECDEF FOR JCS-J-5/JAPAN, 
DASD/ISA/EAPR/JAPAN; DEPT PASS ELECTRONICALLY TO USDA 
FAS/ITP FOR SCHROETER; PACOM HONOLULU FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR; 
CINCPAC FLT/PA/ COMNAVFORJAPAN/PA. 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA
SUBJECT:  DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 05/24/07 
 
 
INDEX: 
(1) Eliminating the danger of Futenma airfield: US wants to expedite 
relocation plan 
 
(2) US forces realignment law enacted; How will subsidies help 
relocation plans move forward? 
 
(3) 2007 Close-up column -- US forces realignment bill to be enacted 
into law today: Local governments housing US bases forced to make a 
difficult decision with subsidies tied to realignment plans 
 
(4) Interview on collective self-defense (Part 3): Opposition DPJ's 
policy chief Takeaki Matsumoto insists on using UN judgment as 
yardstick for Japan's response 
 
(5) OIE classifies US as controlled-risk nation for BSE; Japan may 
be pressed to ease import conditions for US beef 
 
ARTICLES: 
(1) Eliminating the danger of Futenma airfield: US wants to expedite 
relocation plan 
 
OKINAWA TIMES (Page 5) (Full) 
May 24, 2007 
 
Kevin K. Maher, US consul general in Okinawa 
 
I had an opportunity on May 14 to speak about the issue of Futenma 
relocation in a regular meeting of the Okinawa Association of 
Corporate Executives. Again, I would like to convey to the people of 
Okinawa Prefecture an outline of my speech there and my true 
opinions. 
 
First of all, I want to stress that the US government is aware of 
the concerns of local residents living in the vicinity of Futenma 
airfield about danger and noise and that we agreed more than 10 
years ago in the SACO final report to relocate Futenma airfield. 
Unfortunately, however, Japan was unable to implement the SACO 
relocation plan for various reasons. 
 
In October 2005, the Japanese and US governments agreed anew in a 
two-plus-two meeting of the Japan-US Security Consultative Committee 
to relocate Futenma airfield to a US military facility at Camp 
Schwab on Henoko Point in Nago. In addition, the US government 
agreed again on Futenma relocation in May 2006 and in May 2007. Now 
is the time to implement this relocation plan. We hope that the 
Futenma relocation plan will be accelerated. 
 
The realignment plan in Okinawa is a rare chance that comes once in 
several decades, and I believe that this large-scale plan, if it is 
brought to fruition, will lead to a substantial reversion of bases 
and to a mitigation of the burden. 
 
This realignment plan is to relocate the Futenma base from a densely 
populated place in the city of Ginowan to a US military facility at 
Camp Schwab and is to transfer 8,000 Marines to Guam, thereby 
reducing or returning the sites of most US facilities that are 
located south of Kadena. In order to carry out the plan, it is 
desirable that all those concerned, including the prefectural and 
municipal governments, cooperate. We would like to ask for local 
understanding and support. 
 
We need to do things in a realistic way. In October 2005, the 
 
TOKYO 00002336  002 OF 009 
 
 
Japanese and US governments agreed to a document titled "Japan-US 
Alliance: Transformation and Realignment for the Future." This has 
two major goals. One is to mitigate the burden of base-hosting local 
governments. The other is to improve the capabilities of our 
alliance. It is very important to proceed with these two things at 
the same time. 
 
It is not realistic to call for simply closing down Futenma 
airfield. Given the present security environment of Asia, it is 
indispensable to maintain the Futenma base's functions, and it is 
realistic to relocate the base functions of Futenma to a US military 
facility at Camp Schwab. We should carry out the Futenma relocation 
plan as soon as possible to dissolve the anxiety of Ginowan 
citizens. That is all I meant in what I said at the meeting of the 
Okinawa Association of Corporate Executives. 
 
(2) US forces realignment law enacted; How will subsidies help 
relocation plans move forward? 
 
YOMIURI (Page 13) (Abridged) 
May 24, 2007 
 
The Diet yesterday passed a bill to facilitate the realignment of US 
forces in Japan featuring a plan to subsidize local governments that 
will bear greater security burdens, paving the way for the 
implementation of the realignment plan, agreed upon last May between 
the governments of Japan and the United States. 
 
Iwakuni 
 
"It is not proper to manipulate the wishes of local governments with 
state subsidies. Such an approach won't be able to change my 
decision." 
 
This comment came in a press conference yesterday from Mayor 
Katsusuke Ihara of Iwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, the planned 
relocation site for carrier-borne jet fighters, now based at US 
Naval Air Facility in Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture. 
 
Ihara's firm stance reflects the fact that the Iwakuni pubic has 
expressed their opposition to the relocation plan on two occasions. 
 
Iwakuni City conducted a municipal referendum last March, shortly 
before the merger with seven neighboring municipalities, in which 87 
PERCENT  said "no" to the fighter jets' relocation. Although the 
outcome of the referendum lost its effectiveness with the municipal 
merger, Ihara won the new city's mayoral race in April on the slogan 
of blocking the relocation. 
 
The situation has changed markedly over the last one year, however. 
 
The government produced last May a US force realignment final report 
mentioning the plan to relocate the carrier-borne aircraft to 
Iwakuni regardless of the city's referendum and the outcome of the 
mayoral race. As a result, the Yamaguchi prefectural government, 
which had been aligned with Iwakuni, effectively endorsed the 
relocation plan in hopes of receiving state subsidies. 
 
The Defense Facilities Administration Agency compiled its fiscal 
2007 budget that did not include 3.5 billion yen in subsidies for 
the project to build a new Iwakuni city hall. It was intended to 
serve as pressure on the anti-base group in the city. 
 
 
TOKYO 00002336  003 OF 009 
 
 
Ihara now finds himself facing a growing number of local calls for a 
pragmatic response in order to obtain the government's economic 
package and subsidies. 
 
For instance, Iwakuni Chamber of Commerce and Industry President 
Hisashi Nagano took this view: "It is not appropriate to describe 
the government's steps as a carrot-and-stick approach. There is 
every reason for a municipality bearing a security burden to receive 
financial aid from the government. This is a once-in-a-century 
opportunity." 
 
The tide has also changed for the city assembly in which the pro- 
and anti-base groups had been competing with each other. The city 
assembly rejected in March the FY2007 budget designed to make up for 
the shortfall in the city hall construction spending with the merger 
special bonds. Then came the assembly's adoption of a resolution to 
effectively accept the relocation plan. "The fact that the mayor's 
attitude is blocking the government's economic package is a serious 
blow to the city, which is financially strapped," an assembly member 
noted. 
 
Given the turmoil in the municipal government over the force 
realignment plan, some city executives fear that the city might 
collapse. 
 
Hardships have not ended for Ihara. On May 22, the prefectural 
government decided to suspend its housing project in Atagoyama in 
central Iwakuni. The city is likely to be pressed to convert it into 
a US military housing project. 
 
Some people speculate that in the event of the FY2007 budget being 
rejected once again in the regular June city assembly session, Ihara 
would resign and run in the mayoral race that would follow in order 
to seek the public's judgment on the realignment plan. Will Ihara be 
able to reverse the subsidy-oriented public opinion? 
 
Futenma 
 
In the wake of Diet approval of the special measures legislation, 
Mayor Yoshikazu Shimabukuro of Nago, the relocation site for the US 
Marine Corps' Futenma Station, commented yesterday: "I will make 
every effort to stabilize the livelihoods of the local residents and 
revitalize the local economy." Touching on the fact that the law is 
good only for 10 years, Shimabukuro said: "I hope the government 
will extend it as long as there are bases here." 
 
Nago City Assembly Chairman Kenyu Shimabukuro of the henoko district 
adjacent to Camp Schwab also noted: "We are the only place in Japan 
that has accepted the Futenma relocation plan, so we think we 
deserve special treatment from the central government." 
 
Nago has been split over the Futenma relocation plan since the 
government came up with a sea-based heliport plan in 1996. The 
government has supported the pro-base group by, among other steps, 
hosting the 2000 Summit in Okinawa and offering a 10-year, 
100-billion-yen northern part economic package to improve 
infrastructure there. In enacting the special measures law this 
time, the government has decided to continue giving special 
consideration to Okinawa, as seen its partial continuation of the 
northern part economic package. 
 
But past developments also showed difficulty in implementing 
relocation plans after obtaining local understanding. 
 
TOKYO 00002336  004 OF 009 
 
 
 
The Futenma relocation plan has stalled over making changes to the 
government's plan to build a V-shaped pair of runways at Camp Schwab 
rather than over the appropriateness of the relocation plan itself. 
 
"The special measures law was enacted, but that doesn't mean the 
Futenma relocation plan would move forward immediately," a senior 
Okinawa official noted. 
 
47 of 68 affected local governments accept relocation plans 
 
The US forces realignment special measures law will be good for 10 
years until March 31, 2017. The law is designed to give a boost to 
the implementation of the US forces realignment plan, agreed upon by 
Tokyo and Washington last May. The key element in the law is to 
create a system to provide subsidies to municipalities accepting 
additional security burdens in accordance with the state of progress 
in implementing the plan. The government has earmarked 5.1 billion 
yen for FY2007, the program's initial year. The total amount is 
expected to reach 100 billion yen in the end. 
 
According to the Defense Ministry, 47 out of the 68 affected local 
government have expressed a willingness to accept realignment plans. 
Although they are not totally happy with the relocation plans 
because of projected noise and security factors, carrots in the name 
of state subsidies are extremely appealing to them. 
 
Mayor Yoshifumi Tsuchiya of Shintomi Town, Miyazaki Prefecture, home 
to the Air Self-Defense Force's Nyutabaru base, which has accepted 
US fighter training, took this view about the new law yesterday: 
"It's best not to bear any burden. Nonetheless, I can give a 
positive assessment to the law to some extent. As the next step, I 
would like to ask the government to allow us to spend subsidies in a 
broader way." 
 
(3) 2007 Close-up column -- US forces realignment bill to be enacted 
into law today: Local governments housing US bases forced to make a 
difficult decision with subsidies tied to realignment plans 
 
MAINICHI (Page 3) (Full) 
May 23, 2007 
 
Kaori Onaka, Yudai Nakazawa, Norio Oyama 
 
A bill for facilitating the implementation of USFJ realignment plans 
is to be enacted into law today. The bill will pressure relevant 
local governments to accept more of the burden of hosting US 
military facilities in return for subsidies amounting to 100 billion 
yen concerning the realignment plans. It will also serve as the 
grounds for Japan to pay the costs of relocating US Marines from 
Okinawa to Guam, which are expected to exceed 700 billion yen. The 
central government wants to both maintain deterrence and reduce 
Okinawa's burden, and it also wants to build an irreplaceable 
alliance between Japan and the US with a vast amount of financial 
aid as the driving force. Meanwhile, local governments are being 
forced to make a difficult decision on the question of whether to 
accept subsidies in return for tolerating an increase in the burden 
related to the military facilities. 
 
"Some people describe the subsidy system relating to the force 
realignment plans as something like slapping local governments in 
the face with a wad of cash. What do you think?" Ichita Yamamoto of 
the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said at a session 
 
TOKYO 00002336  005 OF 009 
 
 
yesterday of the Upper House Committee on Foreign Affairs and 
Defense, turning to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Under the subsidy 
system, subsidies will be provided to local governments in 
proportion to the degree of their cooperation in accepting the 
burden. 
 
Abe's answer to Yamamoto was: "Subsidies are not meant to persuade 
local governments by the strength of money but meant to properly 
respond to the local governments that decided to (accept an increase 
in the burden of their hosting US forces) for the security of the 
country." 
 
It is no mistake, however, that the subsidies of this kind can 
become a bargaining chip for facilitating the realignment plans. 
Local governments' moves in this sense are divided into four stages: 
(1) announcement of accepting realignment plans; (2) launch of an 
environmental impact assessment; (3) launch of the construction of a 
necessary facility; and (4) implementation of realignment plans. The 
amount of subsidy will increase according to progress. This 
mechanism makes it easy to induce local governments to accept 
realignment plans, as well as to prevent them from "running away" 
after receiving subsidies. The central government has already 
budgeted 5.05 billion yen for subsidies to be provided in this 
fiscal year. 
 
In fact, local governments, which have six candidate bases for the 
transfer of US military aircraft drills conducted at present at 
Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, announced they would accept the 
transfer, like Aomori Prefecture's Misawa City Government noting, 
"It's unavoidable for our burden to increase because of our 
cooperation with the central government for its policy." Mayor 
Hisami Arakawa of Fukuoka Prefecture's Chikujo Town, where the 
drills were already transferred, voiced his expectations: "Our town 
was the first to accept the relocation, so we believe we will 
receive the largest subsidy." 
 
In contrast, Yamaguchi Prefecture's Iwakuni City, which houses the 
Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni Base, which is seen as the 
relocation site for the 59 carrier-based planes assigned to the 
Naval Air Facility Atsugi Base (in Kanagawa Prefecture) and 12 air 
refueling planes based in the Futenma Air Station, was thrown into a 
jumble over the subsidy issue, because the central government put an 
end last December to subsidizing the city for the construction of a 
city office building. This subsidy had been provided in line with 
the agreement of the Japan-US Special Action Committee on Okinawa, 
per se, but as a result of the city being involved in the 
realignment plans, the situation has changed. On May 17, Mayor 
Katsusuke Ihara attended a meeting of the Lower House Committee on 
Security and argued: "It's incredible that the subsidy was stopped 
owing to US force realignment plans. That is disturbing the citizens 
even further." 
 
The city government has yet to find a way out of the confusion. 
During a city assembly session in March, the assembly rejected the 
initial budget bill, which included a plan to use special merger 
local bonds for the construction of a new city office building, 
while the assembly adopted a resolution in effect accepting the plan 
for the transfer of carrier-based aircraft. 
 
What are the grounds for 730 billion yen figure for Japan's share? 
 
Along with the relocation of the Futenma airfield, 8,000 Marines and 
their 9,000 dependants are expected to move from Okinawa to Guam. A 
 
TOKYO 00002336  006 OF 009 
 
 
road map for the implementation of the US force realignment as 
agreed on between Japan and the US at a Japan-US Security 
Consultative Committee (2+2) session in May 2006 mentioned that the 
realignment costs would be shared by Japan and the US. However, how 
much money Japan will actually pay has yet to be determined, as 
Foreign Minister Taro Aso said, "A number of rumors are flying 
around. One rumor is that the Japanese side's burden will amount to 
3 trillion yen, but the exact amount has yet to be calculated." 
Paying that amount is an administrative act, but the grounds for 
that calculation are very vague. 
 
A symbol of this vagueness would be the construction cost of family 
housing. At a meeting yesterday of the Upper House Committee on 
Foreign Affairs and Defense, Tsurunen Marutei of the major 
opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ or Minshuto) argued that 
the construction cost per house calculated by the US side was no 
more than 20 million yen or so, but Washington indicated 
construction costs of 800 million yen per unit to the Japanese side. 
Marutei sought to disclose the basis for the calculation, arguing, 
"It's a waste of money." But Prime Minister Abe simply said: "We 
will carefully calculate the cost." 
 
According to the road map, the total relocation cost is estimated at 
10.27 billion dollars (or some 1.23 trillion yen). Of this amount, 
Japan will pay 6.09 billion dollars (some 730 billion yen), of which 
a maximum 2.8 billion dollars (or 340 or so billion yen) is to be 
disbursed from the national coffers. The remaining 3.29 billion 
dollars (or some 400 billion yen) is likely to be financed or lent 
by a special purpose entity (SPE) to be established by private firms 
in the region via the Japan Bank for International Cooperation 
(JBIC) and other organizations. The SPE will construct housing and 
repay the loans from rent income to the Japanese government through 
the JBIC. 
 
However, Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma pointed out that "it will take 
50 years" to repay the loans from rent income. Depending on the 
circumstances, the buildings during that period could become 
superannuated and turn into nonperforming loans. Osaka University 
Prof. Kazuya Sakamoto, a close aide to Abe, noted at a 
question-and-answer session of the Lower House Committee on 
Security: "This sort of cost-sharing is quite unusual. As a matter 
of fact, Japan's payment for the construction of another country's a 
military facility in that country's territory is questionable." 
 
(4) Interview on collective self-defense (Part 3): Opposition DPJ's 
policy chief Takeaki Matsumoto insists on using UN judgment as 
yardstick for Japan's response 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
May 24, 2007 
 
-- What is your view about Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's approach of 
having an expert panel discuss the question of the exercise of the 
right to collective self-defense? 
 
Matsumoto: "I think the establishment of that panel in itself has 
become his goal. He appears to be fanning the flames and trying to 
come up with a conclusion at a sitting instead of promoting 
discussion according to a plan based on his term in office. This 
approach is sensational. It's dangerous to debate the question of 
the use of armed force under such a time table." 
 
-- Some members in you party are tolerant of exercising the right to 
 
TOKYO 00002336  007 OF 009 
 
 
collective self-defense. 
 
Matsumoto: "Every member has his or her own taste, but our party 
bands together. Using armed force is viewed as an illegal act 
internationally. Cases where using armed force is allowed are 
limited for cases of self-defense and action taken in accordance 
with the United Nations Charter. These two are the premise for 
(Japan to) exercise the right to collective defense." 
 
-- The prime minister instructed the panel to examine four cases 
regarding the question of the use of the right to collective 
self-defense. Of the four, intercepting missiles and protecting US 
war ships are strongly called for by the US military. 
 
Matsumoto: "We need to value our relations with the United States, 
but should Japan-US relations turn into those between the US and the 
United Kingdom, Japan, following America's decision to exercise the 
individual defense right, would support it. We never aim to develop 
the Japan-US alliance into global alliance. 
 
"To give an example, whether it was the right thing to open war 
against Iraq is now viewed as a big issue internationally. Launching 
that war was a decision by the US. If Japan totally allows the 
exercise of the right to collective self-defense, chances will 
increase that Japan will be affected by other countries' individual 
self-defense rights and decisions to use armed force. We therefore 
have been sticky on the propriety of the Iraq war." 
 
-- Do you mean that the Japan-US alliance should not be made a 
criterion for Japan to decide whether to exercise the right to 
collective self-defense? 
 
Matsumoto: "In the area of diplomacy, Japan needs to keep it in mind 
that Germany and Japan are considered by the rest of the world as 
the countries that caused the war 60 years ago.  Should Japan be 
engaged in using armed force, Japan should use a UN decision that 
can easily obtain approval from most people as a criterion for Japan 
to make a decision." 
 
-- Minshuto insists that Japan should play an active part in UN 
peacekeeping operations (PKO). 
 
Matsumoto: "We must further step into debate on PKO cooperation. If 
we establish an international peace cooperation basic law in 
conformity with the Constitution, I think Japan could respond even 
more to PKO requests. Regarding the use of armed force, Japan needs 
to at least create a law for that purpose. This may lead to amending 
the PKO Cooperation Law." 
 
(5) OIE classifies US as controlled-risk nation for BSE; Japan may 
be pressed to ease import conditions for US beef 
 
YOMIURI (Page 3) (Excerpts) 
May 24, 2007 
 
New international standards 
 
The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) classified the United 
States as a "controlled-risk nation" for BSE to allow it to export 
beef irrespective of cattle age. The OIE has introduced a new 
three-level safety-classification system for BSE since early this 
year. The OIE divides countries into three categories: those having 
"negligible risk of BSE"; "controlled BSE risk"; and "undetermined 
 
TOKYO 00002336  008 OF 009 
 
 
risk of BSE". This classification is reached as a result of 
screening documents related to outbreaks of BSE and the management 
of feed. Countries in the first category are allowed to export beef 
without any restrictions at all. Countries in the second category 
are allowed to export even specified risk materials (SRM) if such 
materials are from cattle aged 30 months or younger. 
 
In its general meeting, the OIE unanimously approved the 
applications of 11 countries and regions. Japan also supported the 
OIE Science Committee's decision on the US application, but it still 
takes the view that "the OIE authorization will not immediately lead 
to a relaxation of Japan's import conditions," as Chief Cabinet 
Secretary Shiozaki noted. 
 
SIPDIS 
 
On this point, a senior official of the Ministry of Agriculture, 
Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) commented: "Since we have not read the 
contents of the detailed report submitted by the US to the OIE, it 
will be impossible for us to judge whether an outbreak of BSE would 
be prevented in Japan." 
 
Japan currently limits imports of US beef to cattle 20 months of age 
or younger, adding the extra condition that all SRMs be removed. 
Japan's requirements are considerably severer than those of the US. 
OIE authorization is legally unenforceable, so the two countries 
will determine final conditions through bilateral negotiations, but 
Japan will be inevitably pressed to ease its conditions based on the 
new OIE standards. 
 
US pressure 
 
After the OIE decision was announced, US Secretary of Agriculture 
Mike Johanns told reporters: "We hope that countries closing their 
markets will start moving in the direction of drawing a conclusion 
immediately." 
 
US congressional members and high-ranking government officials have 
quickly issued comments in succession. Taking advantage of the OIE 
authorization, persons concerned in the US are aiming to urge their 
trade partners to review their import conditions. Following the 
discovery of the first case of BSE in the US, its trade partners 
thrust different import requirements with the US. Under such a 
circumstance, the US was pressed to set up country-specific 
production lines, making it impossible to resort to mass production 
and resulting in being unable to boost exports. 
 
Given the seal of approval from the OIE of the safety of US beef, 
the US is now expected to apply greater pressure on Japan to review 
its import conditions. Japan is likely to be forced to make a 
concession in bilateral talks. 
 
Focus from now 
 
MAFF Minister Matsuoka indicated that, if officially asked by the 
US, Japan would consider the possibility of starting talks with the 
US on relaxing its import conditions for US beef. As the timing, he 
implied sometime after Japan completes its ongoing inspections to 
check whether meatpacking plants in the US have abided by the safety 
procedures set by Japan in early June. 
 
In order for Japan to ease its import requirements for US beef, the 
Japanese government should submit an agreement reached in bilateral 
talks to the Cabinet Office's Food Safety Commission to solicit its 
advice. 
 
TOKYO 00002336  009 OF 009 
 
 
 
The focus of bilater talks will be on Japan's conditions of limiting 
imports of US beef to cattle aged 20 months or younger and of having 
SRMs removed. In 2003, a 21-month-old cow and a 23-month-old cow 
were identified as BSE positive in Japan. These cases prompted Japan 
to adopt tougher import requires than the international standards. 
However, no infection was confirmed in an experience conducted by a 
team of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and Japan is 
losing grounds for its assertion. 
 
Countries or region designated under new OIE safety classification 
system for BSE 
 
      Countries or region: 
 
Negligible risk of BSE: Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Uruguay, 
Singapore 
 
Controlled BSE risk:  America, Canada, Switzerland,        Taiwan, 
Chile, Brazil 
 
SCHIEFFER