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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TOKYO 003447 
 
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 12/18/08 
 
INDEX: 
 
(1) Japan must not just follow the strong (Mainichi) 
 
(2) Editorial: ASDF pulls out of Iraq; Mission tested country on its 
proper role (Yomiuri) 
 
(3) Editorial: Refueling alone not enough (Nikkei) 
 
(4) Civic groups engaging in campaign opposing U.S. Army's forward 
command center at Camp Zama: "Directly-connected with battlefront," 
"Setup has been strengthened" (Mainichi) 
 
(5) Administrative Reform Minister Akira Amari: Aso administration 
places priority on how future generations will assess it, and not on 
current popularity (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
(Corrected copy) Foreign financial institutions cut 3,100 jobs, more 
than 10 PERCENT  of Japanese payrolls, since last August (Nikkei) 
 
ARTICLES: 
 
(1) Japan must not just follow the strong 
 
MAINICHI (Page 1) (Abridged slightly) 
December 18, 2008 
 
By Hiroshi Komatsu, deputy editor in chief 
 
Appreciated by the United States as proof of its alliance with 
Japan, the Self Defense Forces have accomplished their Iraq mission 
with no casualties. This owes much to the troops' discipline and 
devotion. Even so, I object to calling this Japan's success story. 
The reason is because Japan has opted for siding with the strong 
(United States) purely for its own national interests and also 
because we have not discussed our association with the Iraq war in 
our own terms. 
 
Absurd logic has been used over the last five years. (In April), the 
Nagoya High Court ruled the Air Self-Defense Force's airlift mission 
unconstitutional, but then ASDF Chief of Staff Toshio Tamogami 
brushed aside it, saying: "I couldn't care less." The top SDF 
officer looking down on the court ruling, the lawmakers sitting on 
the sidelines, the Diet regarding Iraq and Afghanistan only as a 
political tool... In Japanese history, security discussions have 
never been treated so lightly. 
 
With the widespread belief that anyone can say anything, our society 
has slackened off. I wonder how many people have kept in the minds 
the SDF troops who expended sweat in Samawah and Baghdad. 
 
Japanese political leaders have neither earnestly discussed if there 
was any justification for the military intervention in Iraq that 
cost several tens of thousands of lives nor have they expressed 
remorse and regret for the misinformation about the weapons of mass 
destruction. After deciding to follow the strong, Iraq has become 
someone else's problem to many Japanese people. 
 
Over the last five years, the world has been struggling to overcome 
the Iraq war's negative legacy of how to achieve the coexistence of 
Western and Islamic societies, not to mention the proliferation of 
terrorism. The United States, having sowed the seeds for such a 
 
TOKYO 00003447  002 OF 007 
 
 
situation, has learned through the Iraq war that resolving problems 
takes more than military power. With the advent of a multi-polar age 
including China, India, Russia, and the European Union (EU), a 
search for a new international order has begun. 
 
Having an alliance with the United States for a half a century is an 
invaluable asset for Japanese diplomacy. But excessive reliance on 
the United States to learn of the outside world only through the 
prism of the United States often makes it difficult to see what is 
actually going on in the world. The yardstick called the Japan-U.S. 
alliance is longer sufficient for Tokyo to use in determining its 
positions on finance, energy, the global environment, food, and all 
other challenges we face. 
 
How will Japan be able to provide support to Afghanistan will next 
be tested. The incoming Obama administration that advocates new 
alliances and rebuilding alliances is certain to ask Japan for its 
ideas. Japan must think with its own head what it can do for the 
peace of the region. Japan must not repeat the folly of losing its 
ability to think independently as a result of blindly siding with 
the strong based on its myopic logic of pursuing narrow national 
interests. 
 
(2) Editorial: ASDF pulls out of Iraq; Mission tested country on its 
proper role 
 
YOMIURI (Page 3) (Full) 
December 18, 2008 
 
The Self-Defense Forces successfully ended an historic mission in 
Iraq. Three Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) C-130 transport aircraft, 
which had been used for airlifting operations between Kuwait and 
Iraq, are now on their way home. 
 
The ASDF flew 821 missions over five years, transporting 
approximately 46,500 personnel, including multinational force and UN 
personnel, and 673 tons of cargo. The government decided to pull out 
the ASDF troops, coinciding with the expiration at the end of this 
year of the UN Security Council's resolution that had asked each 
country to cooperation in assisting Iraq's reconstruction. 
 
The ASDF deserves high praise for completing its mission without 
even one casualty. The reason is because of the meticulous care 
taken to secure the safety of its personnel. 
 
Since the dispatch of ASDF and Ground Self-Defense Force personnel 
to Iraq involved unprecedented risk, it put to the test what the 
proper role should be for Japan. 
 
If the reconstruction activities had collapsed and Iraq had turned 
into terrorists' haven, crude oil prices would have soared. The 
peace and stability of the Middle East would also have been 
undermined. 
 
In such a critical situation, should Japan continue to provide just 
financial assistance, while entirely entrusting dangerous missions 
to other countries, as it did in the (first) Gulf war? Or should it 
play a role in physically supporting international operations, 
resolved to face a certain level of danger? 
 
By opting for the latter, Japan, one can say, was not wrong. It has 
taken a step away from its usual sort of international activity. 
 
TOKYO 00003447  003 OF 007 
 
 
 
Even though Japan had been engaged in transport activities overseas 
connected with disaster relief operations, this was the first time 
for the ASDF to be overseas on a mission for such a long period of 
time. The ASDF must have learned the know-how on how to effectively 
operate through its joint activities with other countries' forces. 
 
The lessons learned during the mission, including how to use threat 
information obtained in advance in efforts to secure safety and what 
equipment is most useful. 
 
It is not enough for the SDF just to introduce expensive equipment 
and carry out exercises in order to be ready for a direct emergency. 
It must proactively use troops in actual missions, including 
dispatching personnel in the event of domestic disasters and 
international peace cooperation activities. 
 
Even though the ASDF unit has been withdrawn, Japan must continue 
its assistance by other means, such as providing official 
development assistance. 
 
Public security in Iraq has improved. However, the situation there 
is far from reaching the level that allows regular economic 
activities. 
 
Japan announced a $5 billion ODA program for Iraq in 2003, of which 
grant aid totaling 1.5 billion yen has been disbursed. However, of 
the 3.5 billion dollars for reimbursable loan aid, assistance for 
the construction of a power generation system and the construction 
of ports and harbors costing $2.5 billion has just entered the 
implementation stage. The specifics of aid to be financed with the 
remaining $1 billion have yet to be set. 
 
Japan should rush to implement the remaining payable loan aid. It 
should also get private-sector business and investment off the 
ground. Otherwise, its Iraq reconstruction assistance effort will 
remain incomplete. 
 
(3) Editorial: Refueling alone not enough 
 
NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) 
December 17, 2008 
 
The Diet has now enacted a law allowing a one-year extension of the 
Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling activities in the Indian 
Ocean. The government will not have to call off the MSDF's refueling 
mission there unlike last year. However, the situation in 
Afghanistan is reportedly going from bad to worse. The international 
community has growing expectations for Japan to do something more 
than refueling. 
 
The two prime ministers, Shinzo Abe and Yasuo Fukuda, were driven 
out of office. That is primarily because the refueling legislation 
could not be expected to clear the Diet. This is a result of all-out 
resistance put up by the leading opposition Democratic Party of 
Japan (Minshuto) with a majority of seats held by the opposition 
parties in the House of Councillors. 
 
This time around, the DPJ did not resist that far. This is probably 
one of the DPJ's tactics aiming to have the House of Representatives 
dissolved for a general election. However, it may be a sense of 
realism that envisages a change of government. We would like to 
 
TOKYO 00003447  004 OF 007 
 
 
think of it that way. 
 
Japan's refueling activities are appreciated to a certain extent in 
the international community. In this sense, the cost efficiency of 
such activities is high. However, the Afghan situation is growing in 
severity. The international community wants Japan to do something 
more than just refueling. 
 
In a Dec. 9 media-sponsored symposium at Keidanren Kaikan Hall in 
Tokyo, ambassadors and ministers to Japan from eight countries 
expressed expectations for Japan. 
 
U.S. Ambassador Schieffer said: "We understand that Japan cannot 
send the Self-Defense Forces to Afghanistan. But civilians can go." 
British Ambassador Warren asked Japan to send helicopters or provide 
financial assistance for sending them. Canadian Ambassador Fried 
pointed out the importance of activities in three areas-defense, 
development, and diplomacy. 
 
They all called on Japan to do something more than refueling. Above 
all, U.S. President-elect Obama and his administration are insisting 
on pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq. Meanwhile, the Obama 
administration is ready to send more troops to Afghanistan for the 
war on terror. Obama is expected to call on the international 
community to cooperate. 
 
In the Afghan battle, more than 1,000 soldiers from at least 22 
countries died. The number of casualties is on the increase. That is 
why the international community needs to beef up its solidarity. 
Japan can hardly blink. 
 
There are no more than 100 Japanese nationals, including diplomats 
and aid workers, serving in Afghanistan. The Foreign Ministry has 
warned Japanese citizens to evacuate that country. There is a 
dilemma about carrying out civilian activities. But as Ambassador 
Schieffer said, "Every country takes a risk by participating." 
 
(4) Civic groups engaging in campaign opposing U.S. Army's forward 
command center at Camp Zama: "Directly-connected with battlefront," 
"Setup has been strengthened" 
 
MAINICHI (Page 20) (Full) 
Sagami Edition, December 18, 2008 
 
How do those who monitor the moves at and collect information on 
Camp Zama see the past year since the transfer of the U.S. Army's 
forward command center to the site? 
 
Tokio Kaneko (58), Sagamihara City Assembly member, who is 
continuing monitoring activities at Camp Zama, said, "The setup has 
been strengthened with the deployment of military vehicles and 
communications facilities." He noted that many high mobility 
multi-purpose wheeled vehicles (HMMWV) that can be used on the 
desert, fitted with such weapons as machineguns, are now deployed 
there. 
 
Junko Hara (56), a member of a civic group that is continuing a 
campaign against the forward command center, watched soldiers 
engaging in drills with the guns pointed directly outside the base. 
She noted, "I felt the level of that drill was different from that 
of drills carried out previously." She also said, "Their operations 
used to focus on logistical support, such as transportation and 
 
TOKYO 00003447  005 OF 007 
 
 
communications. Now I got the impression that they are directly 
connected with the battlefront." Concerning Zama City's policy 
switch from opposition to the strengthening of base facilities to a 
soft policy line, she said, "I wonder in what direction Japan will 
head." 
 
Kaneko touched on the circumstance of U.S. Army, "They presumably 
have yet to set specifics of the realignment." Once President-elect 
Obama assumes office, it would be possible for the U.S. to withdraw 
from Iraq. He pointed out, "(The deployment) may be lagging behind 
due to the economic slowdown." 
 
(5) Administrative Reform Minister Akira Amari: Aso administration 
places priority on how future generations will assess it, and not on 
current popularity 
 
TOKYO SHINBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
December 18, 2008 
 
The future course of the administration of Prime Minister Taro Aso 
is seen as chaotic. With the approval rates for the Aso cabinet 
plunging in the polls, many LDP lawmakers are now trying to distance 
themselves from the prime minister. With an eye on dissolution of 
the House of Representatives and a general election next year, calls 
for political realignment are growing. This newspaper interviewed a 
ruling coalition member who may hold the key to the political 
situation next year. 
 
-- The prime minister is having an uphill battle. What do you think 
are his good points? 
 
Amari: Up close, he has his charm. Unexpectedly, he can talk about 
the heart of a matter with simple expression. In the recent summit 
of the leaders of Japan, China and South Korea, as well, he 
explained Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao the need to maintain the 
dollar-based currency system in ways easy to understand. His 
initiative in the trilateral summit was perfect. 
 
-- The prime minister has often made slips of the tongue. 
 
Amari: He should have had more simulations before making his 
remarks. The prime minister's aides should make arrangements by 
collecting necessary information beforehand. 
 
-- The prime minister has put off dissolution of the House of 
Representatives, citing priority on policy over politics. 
 
Amari: He made the right decision. The U.S.-originated financial 
crisis has gradually become serious. The United States is in the 
process of a transition of power and Europe has never experienced a 
financial crisis. I think he might have thought that he should not 
create a situation in which there would be no one in control in 
Japan, the U.S. and Europe. 
 
-- Was there any chance for the prime minister to dissolve the Lower 
House? 
 
Amari: There was the only one chance and that was immediately after 
he formed his cabinet. That option could have minimized the period 
of the absence of the prime minister. If the ruling coalition had 
won the election, the prime minister might have fulfilled his 
mission, suppressing the opposition-controlled House of 
 
TOKYO 00003447  006 OF 007 
 
 
Councillors. 
 
-- Do you have any idea how to put an end to his plunging 
popularity? 
 
Amari: The prime minister suggested the consumption tax should be 
increased in three years, although he was aware that a tax hike is 
unpopular. This could not be done by his predecessors. Somebody has 
to deal someday with the issue of securing stable fiscal resources 
for the social security system. Politics' true worth is to be 
appreciated by future generations in a decade or two decades later. 
It is not just going along with public opinion. 
 
-- Some in the ruling camp are calling for a shuffle of the cabinet 
and LDP leadership. 
 
Amari: The prime minister probably has no intention to shuffle the 
cabinet and party executive lineup, but I agree it is one of his 
options. The current cabinet was formed based on the premise of 
Lower House dissolution. It was not a full-scale cabinet for making 
policies. I think there should be a dream team that would tackle the 
difficult situation of a century by appointing bigwigs who are 
policy experts to a new cabinet. 
 
-- When do you think the prime minister will dissolve the Lower 
House? 
 
Amari: It is not a matter that a cabinet member can easily talk 
about. However, the prime minister needs to dispatch a message how 
Japan will deal with the global financial crisis in order to 
stabilize the financial market. The prime minister has said that he 
will implement comprehensive economic measures such as the fiscal 
2008 first and second supplementary budgets and the state budget for 
fiscal 2009 in succession. The government should at least come up 
with the outline of such comprehensive measures. 
 
-- What is the role of the "NASA group" composed of the prime 
minister's close aides, including you? 
 
Amari: We have risked our political life to support Mr. Aso since 
the majority of the party members did not back him. We don't want to 
be ridiculed by those who are riding on the trend. The group's 
principle is to take frankly with the prime minister. I think our 
group is playing some kind of roles in order to build a system to 
support the prime minister by the party as a whole, because all 
members are the central figures of the LDP factions. 
 
-- Do you think the prime minister has changed? 
 
Amari: Mr. Aso is always cheerful. He never lets his guard down even 
while drinking. He is great. 
 
(Corrected copy) Foreign financial institutions cut 3,100 jobs, more 
than 10 PERCENT  of Japanese payrolls, since last August 
 
NIKKEI (Page 3) (Excerpts) 
December 18, 2008 
 
Hit by the ongoing financial crisis, foreign-affiliated financial 
institutions have accelerated moves to slash jobs in Japan. Since 
credit woes stemming from the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis became 
serious in August of last year through mid-December of this year, 
 
TOKYO 00003447  007 OF 007 
 
 
3,100 jobs have been cut. The cuts amount to 11 PERCENT  of the 
Japanese on their payrolls (about 28,000 persons). Foreign firms are 
expected to continue cutting jobs, and a total of 4,400 workers may 
be thrown out of work by the middle of 2009, according to a report 
produced by human resources consulting firm Executive Search 
Partners Co. yesterday. 
 
U.S. and European financial institutions began to step up 
retrenchments in Japan in the wake of the failure of major U.S. 
brokerage house Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in mid-September. With 
financial institutions saddled with massive losses stemming from 
turmoil in the markets, downsizing has spread from real estate and 
securitization to market trading, investment banking, asset 
management, and custodial services. 
 
Goldman Sachs Japan Co., whose U.S. parent company logged its first 
quarterly loss since it was listed in 1999, has cut nearly 150 jobs 
in its investment banking, equities, custodial, and other 
operations. Credit Suisse has axed more than 70 workers mainly in 
its investment banking division as of the end of last week. Job cuts 
at these two firms account for 10 PERCENT  of their total Japanese 
payrolls. 
 
Deutsche Securities Inc. has slashed nearly 60 jobs in 
securitization and other sections. Morgan Stanley Japan Securities 
Co. and Merrill Lynch Japan Securities Co. have also reduced their 
employees. 
 
The Bank of America, a leading U.S. bank, plans to cut back its 
workforce across the world by up to 35,000 over the next three 
years, with its business integration with Merrill Lynch. European 
financial institutions are also stepping up cutbacks. Executive 
Search estimates that a total of 4,400 jobs at foreign financial 
institutions could be eliminated by the middle of 2009. This figure 
accounts for 16 PERCENT  of their workforces in Japan. 
 
ZUMWALT