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FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9926
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0381
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 0391
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RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 1980
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RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 7087
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 8350
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RUEHDN/AMCONSUL SYDNEY 0534

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 TOKYO 005407 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IO, G, EAP/J, EEB/ESC, AND 
OES/EGC (HARLAN WATSON, BARBARA DEROSA- 
JOYNT, DREW NELSON) 
WHITE HOUSE FOR CEQ 
DOE FOR S-3 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2017 
TAGS: SENV ENRG KGHG PREL JA
SUBJECT: BALI AND BEYOND -- JAPAN CONSIDERING SECTORAL 
TARGETS, WANTS U.S. INPUT ON DISCUSSION PROCESS 
 
REF: A. SECSTATE 159374 
     ¶B. TOKYO 
 
TOKYO 00005407  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador J. Thomas Schieffer for reasons 1.4 b, d. 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Japan is going into the UN Framework 
Convention on Climate Change meeting in Bali (UNFCCC/COP 
13) with different ministries participating, but expressing 
differing views.  Questions of Chinese and Indian 
participation in any further targets for cutting greenhouse 
gases (GHG) weigh heavily in the ministries' thinking, with 
the GOJ looking at investigating a system of sectoral 
targets as a way to get these countries with their growing 
and increasingly competitive industries to act to meet the 
climate change challenge.  Officials appreciate the Major 
Economies initiative, but get bogged down in questions over 
how it will feed into the UN process.  Moreover, they worry 
about how it will fit with the G-8 events the GOJ is 
planning for 2008.  At the same time, Japan continues to 
advocate the "Cool Earth 50" approach first announced by 
then PM Abe, but reaffirmed by Prime Minister Fukuda.  The 
GOJ wants to work closely with the U.S. on climate change 
and asks for more information on specific points.  METI 
urged the USG to support its proposal for an ad-hoc working 
group (AWG) in the UNFCCC, saying Japan and the U.S. need 
much better coordination on feeding Major Economies and G-8 
outputs into the UNFCCC.  At the same time, GOJ officials 
feel EU pressure, see EU initiatives as contrary to 
Japanese and USG thinking, and wonder if European policies 
will carry the day.  END SUMMARY. 
 
JAPANESE GOALS FOR BALI AND BEYOND 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) Ministry of Environment Director General for Global 
Environment Hideki Minamikawa told EMIN and ESToffs Nov. 28 
that the GOJ has three main issues for the Bali UNFCCC COP 
¶13.  First, Japan wants agreement that the "Bali roadmap" 
decided at COP 13 will lead to a future framework that can 
be agreed upon by COP 15 in 2009.  Second, Japan wants to 
propose a new ad-hoc working group including all UNFCCC 
parties to discuss the framework's particulars.  Third, 
Japan will suggest sectoral "targets" for developed 
countries so as to accommodate China and India's need for 
"common but differentiated responsibilities."  Minamikawa 
noted Japan is looking at the amounts of energy used and 
greenhouse gases produced in certain specific sectors, 
e.g., cement, transportation, or the chemical industry, 
with the idea of countries using this information to then 
identify ways forward in those areas to reduce GHG 
intensity.  The GOJ, he continued, believes this approach 
can be attractive to China, India, Brazil, and other 
emerging market economies which have industries that may 
compete globally, but at the same time have large 
underdeveloped areas or parts of their populations who live 
in absolute poverty.  An MOE staffer present at the meeting 
later told ESToff the GOJ will hold a side-event on this 
sectoral approach at Bali during the UN conference. 
 
¶3. (C) At the same meeting, MOE Global Environment Councilor 
Ryutaro Yatsu asked about the timing of a second Major 
Economies Meeting (MEM) that the U.S. had suggested Japan 
hold prior to the July 2008 G-8 Summit.  Japan "highly 
respects" the U.S. desire to work on a long-term goal 
through the Major Economies process, Yatsu said, but the GOJ 
also wants to promote the 50%-by-2050 global greenhouse gas 
reduction goal in its "Cool Earth 50" climate proposal.  He 
noted the EU is proposing an 80%-by-2050 target for 
developed countries and asked about USG thinking on 
differentiated goals for developed and developing countries. 
In deciding whether to hold a second MEM "before or after" 
 
TOKYO 00005407  002.4 OF 003 
 
 
the G-8 Summit, it is "crucial" to know what type of goal 
the U.S. wants to work on at the MEM, Yatsu said. 
Minamikawa suggested a second MEM could "duplicate" the 
many ministerials and other G-8 meetings that will deal with 
climate.  EMIN drew on the points in ref A and previous 
White House statements to discuss how we see the Major 
Economies initiative playing into the global process. 
(Note:  A November 21 press report indicates the GOJ is 
looking to host a climate summit "similar in scale" to the 
MEM during next year,s G-8.  End note.) 
 
MOFA: GOJ THINKING ON NUMERICAL TARGETS IN FLUX 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶4. (C) ESToffs followed up with MOFA Climate Change Office 
Director Naoto Hisajima.  (Please also see ref B on the 
meeting with Amb. Komachi, the administrative head of 
Japan's Bali delegation.)  Hisajima insisted there is "no 
decision at all" to host a Major Economies-like meeting 
before the G-8 Summit.  There is "no concrete proposal or 
anything to that effect," he said, since MOFA's G-8 
division has not even decided what the G-8 outreach 
countries should be for 2008.  The GOJ, Hisajima noted, 
thinks the Major Economies and G-8 processes "can both 
contribute in a very constructive way, particularly if we 
are able in Bali to launch a new (roadmap)." 
 
¶5. (C) As for Bali, Hisajima said there is widespread 
agreement on developing a Bali roadmap as "hardly anyone 
opposes the launch of something new."  He continued that it 
needs to accommodate a wide range of issues including a 
long-term global goal and also technology research, 
development, and application to avoid being a copy of the 
Kyoto Protocol.  Japan wants to break the monolithic unity 
of the G77 and China, who must take some action toward 
climate change mitigation.  Hisajima pointed out Cool Earth 
50 does not go into differentiated commitments between 
developed and developing countries, given questions whether 
China and India will still be developing countries in 2050. 
 
¶6. (C) On national numerical targets versus a general 
global goal, Hisajima said "that is a central core issue" 
and that there had been heated discussion on the point at 
the first Major Economies meeting.  "Our policy on that 
point is open;" Japan has not decided whether developed 
countries' commitments in the next framework should be in 
the form of numerical targets.  The framework should 
utilize the sectoral approach in some way since "that is 
the best basis for equitable commitments." 
 
METI: PLEASE TELL US YOUR VIEWS NOW 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (C) EMIN followed up further November 30 with METI 
Global Environment DG Hajime Ito, who explained Japan's AWG 
proposal.  For "productive discussions" on a framework, Ito 
said, the number of countries negotiating its particulars 
needs to be limited, as in the Major Economies process. 
"But having said that," he went on, the COP "is the only 
possible basis for negotiations," and so "maybe we should 
work together to create some limited-numbers meeting in the 
COP."  Hence, Japan's proposal for an AWG meeting at UNFCCC 
COPs.  A METI staffer explained the AWG could be the means 
through which the results of the Major Economies meetings 
feed into the UNFCCC.  METI was open in pushing the AWG as 
its proposal with Ito at one point referring to it as "my 
basic idea." 
 
¶8. (C) Ito also stated the U.S. has not been sufficiently 
direct about its views on how to work with Japan on feeding 
Major Economies and G-8 outputs into the UNFCCC.  He said 
 
TOKYO 00005407  003.4 OF 003 
 
 
the U.S. delegation had said at the preparatory meeting in 
Bogor, "we are open" about the Japanese proposal, however, 
there needs to be a decision on this point by the end of 
COP 13.  Ito said we need to be directly exchanging views 
on it now, before the COP.  "I think our (GOJ) positions 
towards COP 13 are very clear," he said, but U.S. positions 
are not.  "You are our closest ally" on climate, and it is 
"high time" to "kick off" discussions on how we'll bring 
the Major Economies substance into the UNFCCC, Ito 
continued.  EMIN reiterated the points in ref A, which 
seemed to satisfy some of the METI concerns.  He also 
pointed toupcoming discussions during and on the margins 
of the U.S./Japan subcabinet. 
 
¶9. (C) A METI staffer pointed out high-level UK climate 
contacts are talking to METI about the details of their 
post-Kyoto vision.  "They explicitly expressed the idea" to 
METI in the past week that "all developed countries must 
accept specific reductions," he said.  On the other hand, 
METI also has a sense of a growing consensus among some 
developing countries that China and India too have to 
participate in reductions schemes, a factor suggesting an 
opportunity to gain support for our approach.  However, Ito 
reiterated the need for further and more detailed 
discussions with the USG now and closed by stressing that 
"we are always ready to support" the Major Economies 
meetings and to coordinate them with the G-8.  He said the 
Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) is helping plan a G-8 
business summit in mid-April and thought this event too 
could help build momentum for U.S. and Japan approaches to 
climate in these meetings through 2008. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10. (C) Not surprisingly, there may be daylight between 
MOFA (which represents Japan,s official position) and MOE 
(generally more pro-Kyoto) on the use of numerical GHG 
reduction targets.  Hisajima refuted what Minamikawa had 
seemed to suggest about Japan's wish to push targets in 
Bali, and indeed MOE views have often been pushed aside by 
industry priorities in public GOJ climate statements over 
the past year.  But when the G-8 ministerials begin, Japan 
will need to make some final decisions.  Japanese policy 
makers are noting the recent Australian elections and EU 
pressure.  METI is overtly soliciting U.S. input into GOJ 
decision-making and telling us that they need it sooner 
rather than later if we are to have the best cooperation 
possible in directing Major Economies outputs into the 
UNFCCC. 
SCHIEFFER