VZCZCXRO4804
PP RUEHFK RUEHKSO RUEHNAG RUEHNH
DE RUEHKO #2418/01 2480123
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 040123Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6999
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/USDOJ WASHDC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/USDOT WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J5//
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMHBA/COMPACFLT PEARL HARBOR HI
RHMFIUU/HQ PACAF HICKAM AFB HI//CC/PA//
RHMFIUU/USFJ //J5/JO21//
RUYNAAC/COMNAVFORJAPAN YOKOSUKA JA
RUAYJAA/CTF 72
RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 2049
RUEHFK/AMCONSUL FUKUOKA 9685
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 3426
RUEHNAG/AMCONSUL NAGOYA 7810
RUEHKSO/AMCONSUL SAPPORO 0266
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5174
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 1170
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1486

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 13 TOKYO 002418 
 
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: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 09/04/08 
 
Index: 
 
1) Top headlines 
2) Editorials 
3) Prime Minister's daily schedule (Nikkei) 
 
Opinion polls: 
4) Kyodo poll after Prime Minister Fukuda's resignation finds LDP 
support rate rose, with 35 PERCENT  of public favoring Taro Aso as 
his replacement  (Tokyo Shimbun) 
5) Asahi poll: 56 PERCENT  of public want swift Diet dissolution for 
a snap election, and 66 PERCENT  call Fukuda's resignation 
"irresponsible"  (Asahi) 
 
LDP election frenzy: 
6) Momentum for supporting Yuriko Koike as LDP presidential 
candidate is growing  (Mainichi) 
7) Koike lining up party support in a bid for LDP presidency 
(Sankei) 
8) Fiscal Policy Minister Yosano intends to run in the LDP 
presidential race  (Yomiuri) 
9) Junior LDP lawmakers fume over the party election rules that they 
see as biased  (Asahi) 
10) Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) alarmed by polls showing 
stronger LDP presence, plans effective media campaign  (Asahi) 
 
Economic policy: 
11) With Fukuda's resignation, economic policy agenda drifting 
rudderless  (Yomiuri) 
12) Government's supplemental budget to be partially funded by 
construction bonds up to 500 billion yen  (Yomiuri) 
 
13) LDP, New Komeito agree to submit to the upcoming extraordinary 
Diet an anti-terror bill allowing MSDF refueling service to continue 
in the Indian Ocean  (Yomiuri) 
 
Asia diplomacy: 
14) Trilateral Japan-China-ROK meeting scheduled for ASEAN event may 
be carried out separately at a later date; New premier may attend 
UNGA, give speech  (Mainichi) 
15) Foreign Ministry sees delay in North Korea's reinvestigation of 
abductee issue as "unavoidable"  (Asahi) 
16) Government perplexed by North Korea's statement it is restoring 
a disabled nuclear facility  (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
Articles: 
 
1) TOP HEADLINES 
 
Asahi: 
Poll: 56 PERCENT  hope for early Lower House election; 66 PERCENT 
say Prime Minister Fukuda's resignation "irresponsible" 
 
Mainichi & Sankei: 
Yuriko Koike expedites securing necessary recommendations from 20 
lawmakers to run in LDP presidential race 
 
Yomiuri: 
Yosano eager to run in LDP presidential election 
 
Nikkei: 
Japan to introduce international accounting rules in 2011 or later 
 
TOKYO 00002418  002 OF 013 
 
 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
Kyodo poll: Fukuda's announcement of resignation boosts support rate 
for LDP 
 
Akahata: 
Time to change politics: JCP urges prefectural committees to ready 
for general election 
 
2) EDITORIALS 
 
Asahi: 
(1) U.S. House Speaker Pelosi's visit to Hiroshima significant first 
step 
(2) Need to support Japanese filmmakers 
 
Mainichi: 
(1) Suspicion of sumo wrestlers using marijuana: Can confidence in 
national sport be secured? 
(2) U.S.-India nuclear cooperation pact: How about North Korea's 
nuclear weapons? (Hiroshi Fuse, editorial writer) 
 
Yomiuri: 
(1) Employment and Human Resources Development Organization: 
Wasteful administrative body should be dissolved 
(2) Paralympics: It doesn't matter how many medals athletes win 
 
Nikkei: 
(1) Economic slowdowns going global 
(2) Russia must respond to EU arbitration 
 
Sankei: 
(1) U.S. presidential race: Hope that new president will strengthen 
Asia policy 
(2) Sumo wrestlers' drug abuse: Nihon Sumo Kyokai president must 
realize responsibility 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
(1) State of emergency in Thailand: Both government and 
antigovernment forces must exercise restraint 
(2) Sumo wrestlers' using marijuana: Thorough investigation 
absolutely necessary 
 
Akahata: 
(1) Military budget request: Japan should drastically cut military 
spending 
 
3) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) 
 
Prime Minister's schedule, September 3, 2008 
 
NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
09:48 
Met with Meteorological Agency Director General Hiraki at the 
Kantei, followed by Cabinet Office Director General Omori. 
 
10:42 
Met with Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura. 
 
11:47 
 
TOKYO 00002418  003 OF 013 
 
 
Met with State Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy Yosano. 
 
14:02 
General assembly of LDP lawmakers from both Diet chambers 
 
14:52 
Meeting of the national council on social security at the Kantei 
 
16:08 
Met with Vice Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Mochizuki and 
Small and Medium Enterprise Agency Director General Hasegawa. 
 
17:01 
Met with State Minister for Consumer Administration Noda, followed 
by Vice Cabinet Office Minister Yamamoto. 
 
17:56 
Arrived at the official residence. 
 
4) Poll: LDP support rate rises after premier announces resignation; 
Aso ranks as top choice for next premier with 35 PERCENT  of public 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Top play) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
In the wake of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's recent announcement of 
his resignation, Kyodo News conducted a telephone-based spot 
nationwide public opinion survey from the evening of Sept. 2 through 
Sept. 3. In the poll, respondents were asked who they thought would 
be appropriate for prime minister after Fukuda. In response, Taro 
Aso, secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, 
ranked first with 35.3 PERCENT . Respondents were also asked which 
political party they would like to vote for in the next election for 
the House of Representatives in their proportional representation 
blocs. To this question, 38.4 PERCENT  chose the LDP, with 34.9 
PERCENT  preferring the leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan 
(Minshuto). As seen from these figures, the LDP slightly outstripped 
the DPJ. 
 
Asked about the framework of government, 43.3 PERCENT  chose an 
"LDP-led coalition government," up 8.5 percentage points from the 
last survey taken in August. Those preferring a "DPJ-led coalition 
government" accounted for 41.7 PERCENT , down 6.5 points. In this 
preference of coalition government, the LDP topped the DPJ for the 
first time in about six months since the March survey. In the 
breakdown of public support for political parties as well, the LDP 
rose 8.1 points to 36.8 PERCENT , with the DPJ dropping 3.2 points 
to 27.0 PERCENT . 
 
Prime Minister Fukuda, whose cabinet's popularity has been hanging 
low, will now step down, and the LDP will elect a new president. 
Public expectations for this seem to be a factor behind the rebound 
in the party's public support. 
 
In the survey, respondents were further asked to pick one from among 
10 LDP lawmakers as an appropriate person to become the next prime 
minister. Ranking next to Aso was former Prime Minister Junichiro 
Koizumi at 15.0 PERCENT , followed by former Defense Minister Yuriko 
Koike at 9.2 PERCENT , Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Yoichi 
Masuzoe at 8.5 PERCENT , and former LDP Policy Research Council 
Chairman Nobuteru Ishihara at 7.1 PERCENT . 
 
 
TOKYO 00002418  004 OF 013 
 
 
Asked about Fukuda's announced resignation, 67.8 PERCENT  answered 
that it was "irresponsible." His cabinet's support rate was 23.5 
PERCENT , down 8.0 points. 
 
In the breakdown of public support for political parties other than 
the LDP and the DPJ, the New Komeito, the LDP's coalition partner, 
was at 2.5 PERCENT , with the Japanese Communist Party at 1.7 
PERCENT , the Social Democratic Party at 1.9 PERCENT , the People's 
New Party at 0.4 PERCENT , and the New Party Japan at 0.8 PERCENT . 
 
5) Poll: 56 PERCENT  call for snap election, 66 PERCENT  see 
premier's resignation as "irresponsible" 
 
ASAHI (Top play) (Abridged) 
September 4, 2008 
 
In the wake of Prime Minister Fukuda's announcement of his 
resignation, the Asahi Shimbun conducted a telephone-based spot 
nationwide public opinion survey. In the survey a total of 66 
PERCENT  answered "yes" when asked if they thought the prime 
minister's sudden announcement of his resignation was irresponsible, 
with 25 PERCENT  saying "no." The answer "yes" accounted for 77 
PERCENT  among those who support the leading opposition Democratic 
Party of Japan (Minshuto), 64 PERCENT  among those with no 
particular party affiliation, and 61 PERCENT  even among those who 
support the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. There was strong 
criticism irrespective of party affiliation. In the survey, 
respondents were also asked if they thought the House of 
Representatives should be dissolved for a general election as early 
as possible. To this question, "yes" accounted for 56 PERCENT , with 
"no" at 33 PERCENT . 
 
Respondents were also asked who they would like to see become the 
next prime minister. In this popularity rating for post-Fukuda 
premiership, LDP Secretary General Taro Aso ranked first at 30 
PERCENT . The second-ranking person was DPJ President Ichiro Ozawa 
at 8 PERCENT , followed by former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi 
at 4 PERCENT  and former Defense Minister Yuriko Koike at 3 PERCENT 
. 
 
In the breakdown of public support for political parties, the LDP 
stood at 29 PERCENT  (26 PERCENT  in the last survey), with the DPJ 
at 21 PERCENT  (20 PERCENT  in the last survey). In the popularity 
ranking of political parties for proportional representation in the 
next election for the House of Representatives, the LDP marked 28 
PERCENT  (27 PERCENT  in the last survey), with the DPJ at 32 
PERCENT  (31 PERCENT  in the last survey). 
 
6) LDP presidential race: Koike rushing to collect endorsement 
signatures; Ishihara also in spotlight as third candidate 
 
MAINICHI (Top Play) (Excerpts) 
September 4, 2008 
 
Secretary General Taro Aso has already announced his intention to 
run in the Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) presidential election. 
Former Defense Minister Yuriko Koike is now trying to secure 
endorsement signatures needed to run in the race. Mid-ranking 
lawmakers, including former Policy Research Council Chairman 
Nobuteru Ishihara, who is eager to run in the race, have launched 
efforts to field a third candidate in a cross-sectional move. Names 
like Ishihara, former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki and 
 
TOKYO 00002418  005 OF 013 
 
 
State Minister for Administrative Reform Toshimitsu Motege were 
cited at a meeting of 10 such lawmakers. In the meantime, State 
Minister for Consumer Administration Seiko Noda, who had left open 
the possibility of running in the race, ruled out the possibility. 
 
Aso will formally declare his candidacy on the 8th. He will focus on 
preparations for the race, including mapping out a policy platform, 
by leaving his duties as secretary general to General Council 
Chairman Takashi Sasagawa. The primary concern for Koike is whether 
she can secure the 20 endorsements needed to run in the presidential 
election. 
 
7) Koike trying to secure necessary number of sponsors to run for 
LDP president 
 
SANKEI (Top Play) (Excerpts) 
September 4, 2008 
 
The Liberal Democratic Party decided in meetings of the Executive 
Council and other committees yesterday to officially announce the 
presidential election to select a successor to Prime Minister Yasuo 
Fukuda on Sept. 10 and hold the election on the 22nd. The party 
reported the decision in a joint plenary meeting of party members of 
both Houses of the Diet. Taro Aso will resign as secretary general 
on the 6th to run for the party presidency and will leave the post 
to the acting secretary general. Within the party, moves are 
accelerating to field rival candidates to run against Aso. Former 
Defense Minister Yuriko Koike has already indicated a willingness to 
run in the election and is now eagerly trying to secure the 
necessary number of recommenders. Junior members are also gearing up 
to field their own candidate. 
 
In a press conference in Tokyo yesterday, Koike expressed her 
eagerness to run in the election, saying: "I have contacted many 
party members." Changing her initial schedule and confining herself 
to her office in the House of Representatives Dietmembers' Building 
yesterday, Koike devoted herself to canvassing names of the 20 party 
members needed to run for party presidency. Yamazaki faction members 
and others have recommended former Policy Research Council Chairman 
Nobuteru Ishihara, but the focus of attention is on whether such 
potential candidates will be able to secure the necessary number of 
recommenders. 
 
Aiming at "policy debate in an open presidential election campaign," 
mid-ranking and junior members are moving to seek their own 
candidates by holding meetings transcending factional borders. An 
increasing number of members are now recommending State Minister for 
Economic and Fiscal Policy Kaoru Yosano and Land, Infrastructure and 
Transport Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki. Meanwhile, Lower House member 
Taro Kono has given up on his candidacy. 
 
The LDP presidential election will consist of 528 votes to be cast 
by 387 party legislators and 141 local chapter representatives with 
three votes allocated to each local chapter. The voting will take 
place in a joint plenary meeting of party members of both Houses of 
the Diet on the afternoon of Sept. 22. 
 
Only Aso is now certain to run in the election. Although Koike, 
Ishihara, and others have been suggested as potential candidates, 
they have yet to secure 20 recommenders. Lawmakers seem to have been 
in emotional turmoil over whether they should give priority to their 
factions or an open political party advocated by former Prime 
 
TOKYO 00002418  006 OF 013 
 
 
Minister Junichiro Koizumi. 
 
8) Yosano eager to run in LDP presidential race; junior lawmakers 
feeling out possibility of filing own candidate 
 
YOMIURI (Top Play) (Full) 
September 4, 2009 
 
A move in the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) emerged yesterday 
aiming at fielding Economic and Financial Policy Minister Kaoru 
Yosano in the Sept. 22 party presidential election. Yosano has 
expressed his willingness to run in the presidential race. The 
official campaign for the LDP presidential race will kick off on 
Sept. 10. There is also a move to file former Defense Minister 
Yuriko Koike as a candidate to vie against Secretary General Taro 
Aso, who has already expressed his intention to run. However, junior 
and mid-level lawmakers are looking into the possibility of fielding 
their own candidate. Yosano does not belong to any faction. Koike is 
a member of the Machimura faction. 
 
As of Sept. 3, Policy Research Council Deputy Chairman Hiroyuki 
Sonoda, a member of the Koga faction, and Masazumi Gotoda, who is a 
Lower House member with no factional allegiance, have asked Yosano 
to stand in the election. 
 
Gotoda told the press corps yesterday: "I want Yosano to come 
forward at any cost." 
 
One of LDP lawmakers supporting Yosano said: "There is a prospect 
that we will be able to garner the support of 20 Diet members, the 
number needed to stand in the presidential election." 
 
Yosano has advocated that in order to stabilize the social security 
system, a consumption tax hike is necessary. He holds a different 
view from a group of lawmakers, centering on Secretary General 
Hidenao Nakagawa, who have called for putting off tax increases. 
 
In a bid to maintain the structural reform policy course, Nakagawa 
has been working on fielding Koike. He yesterday telephoned Taku 
Yamasaki, head of the Yamasaki faction, to ask him to support 
Koike. 
 
The Machimura faction, the largest in the party, has decided not to 
back a specific candidate as one body. 
 
"At this time, we cannot prevent a person who wants to stand in the 
race from running," former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, a supreme 
advisor to the Machimura faction, told reporters, when asked how he 
would respond if Koike announced her candidacy. He indicated that he 
would accept Koike's intent. 
 
Regarding the move by junior and mid-level lawmakers, Lower House 
member Taro Kono, a member of the Aso faction, has begun calling on 
such LDP members to back him if he runs in the race. It remains 
uncertain whether he can garner support from 20 lawmakers. 
 
Kono held talks with Nobuteru Ishihara, a Yamasaki faction member 
and former policy chief, Yasuhisa Shiozaki, a Koga faction member 
and former chief cabinet secretary, and former Administrative Reform 
Minister Yoshimi Watanabe, who does not belong to any faction. The 
four shared the perception that it would be desirable to hold a 
presidential race involving three or four candidates engaged in 
 
TOKYO 00002418  007 OF 013 
 
 
thorough policy debates. 
 
9) Junior LDP lawmakers voice dissatisfaction with presidential 
election method 
 
ASAHI (Page 1) (Excerpts) 
September 4, 2008 
 
The Liberal Democratic Party reported at a joint meeting of its 
members in both chambers yesterday that presidential campaigning 
would start on Sept. 10 for the election on Sept. 22. The method of 
allocating three votes to each prefectural chapter drew fire mostly 
from junior members, who think greater weight should be shifted to 
local votes. 
 
In an LDP presidential election that occurs when the president has 
served out the full term, rank-and-file party members cast ballots 
that will be converted into 300 local votes. In an emergency 
situation resulting from the resignation of the president, votes are 
to be cast by members of the Upper and Lower Houses and three 
members representing each prefectural chapter. In such an instance, 
the number of local votes would be 141, less than half of the 
original votes. 
 
Based on the party rules, the Presidential Election Administration 
Committee has decided on votes by prefectural representatives 
without ballots by rank-and-file members, as was the case last year 
when the party selected a successor to then Prime Minister Abe. In 
response to Election Committee Chairman Hideo Usui's report in 
yesterday's meeting, Senior Vice-Foreign Minister Ichita Yamamoto 
said: "It is going to be the last chance for the LDP to turn around 
the situation and determine its future. We should allot 300 votes to 
the local chapters." Other junior members echoed Yamamoto's view. 
 
But Joint Meeting Chairman Shuzen Tanigawa put an end to the 
discussion, saying, "Time's up." This prompted midlevel and junior 
members to complain that discussion must not be called off halfway 
through. The party's intention to play up an open presidential 
election stumbled from the outset. 
 
10) DPJ alarmed at being overshadowed by LDP, after noting recovery 
of public support for that party in opinion poll; Plans to place 
emphasis on measures to draw media attention 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
A nationwide spot opinion poll has showed public support for the 
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to be recovering. The survey was 
conducted on Sept. 2-3 by the Asahi Shimbun following Prime Minister 
Fukuda's announcement of his decision to step down. Alarmed that 
this trend might intensify as the party presidential election 
campaign begins in full swing, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) 
yesterday launched a team to map out measures to draw media 
attention to itself. 
 
The team, headed by Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama, will look into 
ways to transmit the party's information. Asked for his view about 
the recovery of public support for the LDP in an interview with the 
Asahi Shimbun, Hatoyama replied: "The survey result is attributed to 
the media's focus on the LDP preparing for its presidential race and 
other events following Prime Minister Fukuda's resignation 
 
TOKYO 00002418  008 OF 013 
 
 
announcement." He emphasized the need to take countermeasures, 
remarking: "The DPJ has been criticized as lacking unity, but it is 
really important now for the party to show that the party is unified 
under President Ozawa." 
 
One executive implied a sense of alarm, saying: "We had not 
anticipated that Mr. Fukuda would resign as prime minister at this 
juncture. Our party might be submerged, because members in the LDP 
are wrangling over who should become next prime minister. We must 
seriously consider how to send our message." 
 
Meanwhile, Diet Affairs Committee Chairman Kenji Yamaoka was 
optimistic in commenting: "When a new prime minister comes in, the 
people expect the situation will get better. This is just a normal 
phenomenon. Public support of the LDP will drop as time passes." 
 
In reply to a question about who is desirable as next premier, far 
more respondents picked LDP Secretary General Aso than those who 
chose Ozawa. One DPJ executive grumbled: "It cannot be helped 
because Mr. Aso is the frontrunner in the presidential election," 
and another said: "It is because Mr. Aso belongs to the ruling 
camp." 
 
11) With Prime Minister Fukuda stepping down, future course of 
economic policy unclear 
 
YOMIURI (Page 9) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
An unstable political situation has developed, following Prime 
Minister Fukuda's announcement of his intention to step down, 
affecting budget compilation-related matters and the implementation 
of an economic stimulus package, including environmental protection 
measures. 
 
"Will the meeting really take place?" 
 
The Fiscal Policy System Council, an advisory panel reporting to the 
finance minister, launched discussion on September 3 on the 
compilation of the fiscal 2009 budget. There are many key issues on 
the agenda, such as the reallocation of special road-construction 
funds for other uses and raising the portion of the state's 
contribution to the basic pension. However, government circles are 
deeply perplexed by the prime minister's sudden resignation 
announcement and the ensuing confusion in the political situation, 
as can be seen in Chairman Taizo Nishimuro's having received phone 
calls on the previous day from several panel members asking whether 
the meeting would actually take place. 
 
Concerning the compilation of the fiscal 2009 budget, specific 
measures to constrain the growth of social security expenses by 220 
billion yen have yet to be adopted. How to constrain various 
ambitious budget requests filed by each government agency, including 
the education ministry's request for increasing school personnel, is 
also a thorny issue. 
 
Nishimuro during a press conference on the 3rd stressed his 
intention to move forward with discussions in the run-up to the 
year-end compilation of the budget, regardless of the current 
unstable political situation. He said: "The economic and political 
situation will remain unclear for some time to come. However, I want 
to move ahead with the budget compilation process without being 
 
TOKYO 00002418  009 OF 013 
 
 
captivated by the current unstable situation." The panel at the 
meeting also confirmed its stance of compiling a report proposing 
the compilation of the budget. 
 
However, depending on who will become the next prime minister, it 
may become necessary to drastically change the basic approach to 
compiling the budget. It is unlikely that the direction for the 
discussions will be set anytime soon. 
 
Meeting cancelled all of sudden 
 
Prime Minister Fukuda in July compiled the action program designed 
to realize a low carbon society as part of measures to address 
global warming and revealed a plan to launch on a trial basis a 
carbon emissions trading system allowing companies to trade 
emissions credits in October. However, the Liberal Democratic Party 
(LDP) yesterday all of a sudden cancelled a meeting to discuss a 
specific trading method, using preparations for the presidential 
election as justification. 
 
The government intends to steadily implement the system, as one 
senior Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry official put it. 
However, there is concern that creation of the system might be 
delayed. 
 
The prime minister's resignation announcement is also casting a pall 
over the fate of trade policy. Now that the new multilateral trade 
liberalization talks (Doha Round) under the World Trade Organization 
(WTO) have been put on hold, the government wants to boost bilateral 
trade talks. However, negotiations with South Korea are encountering 
difficulty. Japan is also at odds with Australia over the 
liberalization of the agricultural market. Political leadership is 
indispensable in bargaining with those countries. Under the present 
circumstance, the pace of negotiations could slow. 
 
In response to Prime Minister Fukuda's wish to increase food 
self-sufficiency, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and 
Fisheries intends to compile a plan to amend the farming land system 
with the aim of expanding the scale of agricultural management, by 
making the leasing of faming land easier, and submit related bills 
to the regular Diet session next year. However, some are beginning 
to doubt the feasibility of a set of policies with one saying, 
"There is no guarantee that the new administration would follow 
through with the current policy." 
 
12) Finance Ministry to issue 500 billion yen in construction bonds 
to fund supplementary budget 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
The Finance Ministry on September 3 revealed a plan to issue 
construction bonds worth about 500 billion yen to fund the fiscal 
2008 supplementary budget to be compiled as part of a comprehensive 
economic stimulus package. 
 
The government and the ruling parties revealed a plan to secure 
approximately 1.8 trillion yen from the supplementary budget to 
cover portions of national expenses to be used for the economic 
stimulus package. It had been estimated that there would be a 
shortage of funding resources even after reserved funds from the 
initial fiscal 2008 budget and a surplus from the fiscal 2007 budget 
 
TOKYO 00002418  010 OF 013 
 
 
are used to implement the package. 
 
The government, however, originally had decided not to issue 
additional deficit-covering government bonds to finance the 
supplementary budget to ensure that the policy of restoring fiscal 
balance could be upheld. Construction bonds are issued in order to 
share with future generations the cost of constructing state assets 
to be used for a long period of time, such as buildings and roads. 
They are differentiated from deficit-covering government bonds 
issued to make up for a shortfall in government expenses. However, 
there are no differences between the two types of bonds in the sense 
that issuing such bonds would increase the national debt. 
 
The government will consider using construction bonds to finance 
mainly quake-proofing projects for public elementary and middle 
schools throughout the nation. 
 
13) LDP, New Komeito agree to submit MSDF bill to extra Diet 
session 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
The ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and the New 
Komeito held the first meeting of its project team on the new 
Antiterrorism Special Measures Law in the Diet yesterday, with 
former LDP Vice President Taku Yamasaki presiding. The LDP and the 
New Komeito agreed in the meeting to present a bill at the 
forthcoming extraordinary Diet session amending the law to extend 
the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling activities in the Indian 
Ocean for another year. The ruling parties will make a formal 
decision in the project team's next meeting on Sept. 9. The two 
parties also confirmed that they would call on the leading 
opposition Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto), which is opposed to 
extending the MSDF's refueling mission, for policy talks. However, 
there are no prospects for the legislation to pass the Diet. 
 
After the meeting, Yamasaki indicated that the LDP, based on the 
outcome of the project team's next meeting, would enter into 
procedures to present the bill to the Diet. "We want to present the 
legislation (revising the new antiterror law)," Yamasaki told 
reporters. New Komeito Policy Council Chairman Yamaguchi also said 
it was "only natural" to present the bill. 
 
In the meeting, however, the project team did not go so far as to 
discuss whether the ruling coalition would be able to pass the bill 
during the extraordinary Diet session. This is because there is 
still a perception gap between the two parties. 
 
If the bill revising the law is rejected in the 
opposition-controlled House of Councillors, the LDP will take a 
second vote in the House of Representatives with a majority of 
two-thirds or more to override the upper chamber's decision. However 
the New Komeito remains reluctant to take a second vote in the lower 
chamber. In order for the ruling coalition to present the bill, the 
New Komeito has made it a precondition that the public's 
understanding must be sought and that policy talks with the DPJ and 
other opposition parties must be held. 
 
The LDP will try to find common ground with the DPJ out of 
consideration for the New Komeito. However, the LDP is pessimistic 
about that idea. "The DPJ is strengthening its stand against us, so 
 
TOKYO 00002418  011 OF 013 
 
 
they won't respond to policy consultations," a former cabinet 
minister said. 
 
Meanwhile, the LDP and the New Komeito discussed almost nothing in 
the meeting about the idea of sending out the Self-Defense Forces 
for assistance activities in Afghanistan partly because of the local 
security situation going from bad to worse. "We are not considering 
any major changes in the (SDF's) activities," Yamaguchi said. 
 
14) Japan-China-South Korea summit in danger; Next prime minister 
could attend UNGA 
 
MAINICHI (Page 5) (Abridged slightly 
September 4, 2008 
 
Japan was scheduled to host a trilateral summit with China and South 
Korea in Kobe on Sept. 21 for the first time independently apart 
from ASEAN summits. It was an important diplomatic event to confirm 
Japan's status as a leader and close ties among the three countries 
that serve as the engine of East Asia's politics and diplomacy. 
Japan bore heavy responsibility as the host of the event. 
 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura officially announced 
yesterday the postponement of the trilateral summit. He said: "We 
will continue making coordination to hold the event in Japan before 
the end of the year." September was picked because the Beijing 
Olympics were scheduled for August, an Asia-Europe Meeting for 
October, an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting for November 
and an East-Asia Summit for December. If September is passed up, 
holding an independent trilateral summit will be difficult. 
 
A senior Foreign Ministry official said: "Adjusting the timetables 
of the top leaders of the three countries is extremely difficult. 
The trilateral summit might be held on the sidelines of ASEM or 
other events." A Japan-South Korea summit and a Japan-China summit 
were held in Japan in April and May, respectively. Hosting the 
independent trilateral summit based on those events carried great 
significance for Japan, which wants to set its relations with China 
and South Korea at the center of its Asia diplomacy. Holding the 
trilateral summit on the sidelines of an international conference is 
effectively tantamount to halting the event. 
 
Political turmoil resulting from the changeover of the prime 
minister also prevented Japan from delivering a speech at the UN 
General Assembly in New York in 2006 and 2007. 
 
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, wanting to avoid Japan's absence for 
the third consecutive year, expressed his eagerness to attend the 
UNGA this year until shortly before his resignation announcement. It 
is impossible for an outgoing prime minister to attend UNGA, 
according to a senior Foreign Ministry official. For this reason, 
Machimura expressed hope that the next prime minister will attend 
the UNGA regardless of the tight schedule. Such a suggestion comes 
from the desire to play up the next prime minister's presence ahead 
of the next Lower House election. 
 
The prevailing view is that the Japanese prime minister will deliver 
a speech at the UNGA on Sept. 25, local time. The next LDP president 
is scheduled to be elected on Sept. 22 and will also be elected as 
the next prime minister at the outset of the next extraordinary Diet 
session on the 24th. According to a high-ranking government 
official, it is possible for the new prime minister to deliver a 
 
TOKYO 00002418  012 OF 013 
 
 
speech at the UNGA by leaving Japan late at night on the 24th or on 
the morning of the 25th after assuming office and returning home 
that day by taking advantage of the time difference. It would be a 
three-day, zero-night trip to the United States, however. 
 
The government and ruling coalition are fixated on the UNGA because 
it is a rare diplomatic event at which that the next prime minister 
can demonstrate his presence, given the possibility of a Lower House 
dissolution for a snap general lection before the end of the year. 
In reality, traveling to the United States immediately after being 
elected prime minister seems quite difficult. An opposition lawmaker 
has raised a question about the next prime minister delivering a 
speech overseas before doing so in Japan. Obtaining Diet approval is 
not possible before the next prime minister is determined. UNGA 
attendance is on the line. 
 
15) Foreign Ministry official suggests delay in reinvestigation into 
abductees 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Abridged slightly) 
September 4, 2008 
 
A senior Foreign Ministry official indicated yesterday that chances 
are high that the start of a reinvestigation into the fate of 
Japanese abductees by North Korea would be delayed due to Prime 
Minister Fukuda's resignation. He said: "North Korea could take a 
wait-and-see attitude until the next Japanese administration is 
determined." 
 
Through Japan-DPRK working-level talks in August, the two countries 
agreed for Japan to lift restrictions on visits between the 
countries and to allow chartered flights linking the nations in 
return for the North setting up a reinvestigation committee at an 
early time. But Japan has not received any notice from the North 
about the establishment of the investigation committee. 
 
In the talks, the two countries also agreed to aim at completing the 
reinvestigation in the fall. The official said: "A delay in the 
investigation naturally will delay results." 
 
16) Government perplexed at report on North Korea's reassembling of 
nuclear facility, fearing effect on abduction issue 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
September 4, 2008 
 
A U.S. media company's report that North Korea has begun restoring 
its Yongbyon reactor perplexed Japanese government officials 
yesterday. In the last days of the Fukuda administration, the 
stalled issues with North Korea have plunged deeper into confusion. 
 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said in a press 
conference yesterday that the government has yet to confirm whether 
the information is true. 
 
Foreign Ministry spokesman Kazuo Kodama said in a press briefing: 
"We are aware of the report. The ministry has been exchanging 
information in close cooperation with other countries concerned." He 
added: "We hope North Korea will resume disabling its nuclear 
facilities and complete the work by the end of October." 
 
In late August, North Korea issued a statement noting that it would 
 
TOKYO 00002418  013 OF 013 
 
 
cease its dismantlement program and consider putting the facility 
back together. If the report is proved true, it is a great shock for 
Japan. 
 
The efforts made so far in the six-party talks to urge North Korea 
to dismantle its nuclear facilities may come to naught. In such a 
case, the nuclear threat might grow. If North Korea stiffens its 
attitude further, it may also become impossible to move forward 
negotiations on the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by its 
agents. 
 
The report came in just after Prime Minister Fukuda announced his 
intention to step down. When the prime minister is unable to 
demonstrate his leadership, the government finds it difficult to 
decide how to respond and will have to take a wait-and-see attitude 
for a while. 
 
ZUMWALT