VZCZCXRO9213
RR RUEHFK RUEHKSO RUEHNAG RUEHNH
DE RUEHKO #0257/01 0392257
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 082257Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9293
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 3007
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 9688
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 4786
RUEHGP/AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE 7471
RUEHJA/AMEMBASSY JAKARTA 4491
RUEHKL/AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR 2025
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 0665
RUEHML/AMEMBASSY MANILA 1531
RUEHDO/AMEMBASSY DOHA 0304
RUEHFK/AMCONSUL FUKUOKA 8743
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 2559
RUEHNAG/AMCONSUL NAGOYA 5776
RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 1082
RUEHKSO/AMCONSUL SAPPORO 9237
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHIN/AIT TAIPEI 7576
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/US CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TOKYO 000257 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/J 
STATE PASS DOE FOR T. MUSTIN, W. KILMARTIN AND D. CHONG 
DHS FOR C. BRZOZOWSKI AND M. MOONEY 
CBP CONTAINER SECURITY INITIATIVE FOR D. STAJCAR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETTC EWWT ENRG ELTN ETRD JA
SUBJECT: MEGAPORTS:  JAPAN SEEKS CLARIFICATION ON THIRD 
COUNTRY CARGO INFORMATION-SHARING 
 
REF: A. 09 STATE 64019 
     ¶B. 09 STATE 16717 
     ¶C. 09 TOKYO 638 
     ¶D. 09 TOKYO 468 
 
¶1.  This is an action request.  Please see paragraph 9. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Summary:  The USG should explain how it will use 
container information on third country cargo shipments 
scanned by the Megaports Initiative pilot project in 
Yokohama, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and Ministry of 
Finance (MOF) Customs Bureau officials told emboffs February 
¶1. Though aware that Megaports is a U.S. Department of Energy 
(DOE) program, the officials reiterated the GOJ's request to 
exchange cargo shipment information between Japanese and U.S. 
customs authorities under the Customs Mutual Assistance 
Agreement (CMAA), which governs cooperation between the 
Japanese Customs Administration (Japan Customs) and U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection (CBP).  Under Japanese law, the 
officials explained, the CMAA is the only existing legal 
mechanism to share cargo shipment information with the United 
States; developing a separate agreement or mechanism would 
"take years," the officials asserted.  End summary. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) MOFA Second North America Division North American 
Affairs Bureau Official Kako Sasai and MOF Customs and Tariff 
Bureau Enforcement Division Deputy Director Atsushi Sakai 
asked to meet with emboffs from DOE, State, and CBP February 
1 to discuss information-sharing issues related to the 
Megaports Initiative pilot project in Yokohama.  Sakai 
claimed the GOJ had not initially expected the USG to request 
cargo information regarding third-country shipments, and 
Japan Customs in recent months has begun an internal review 
of this matter.  Under Japanese law, personal information 
used by Japan Customs is kept confidential and can only be 
shared with other parties under the auspices of a legal 
instrument such as the CMAA, Sakai explained.  Although the 
GOJ understands that Megaports is administered by DOE, not 
CBP, the GOJ believes the CMAA is the only existing legal 
instrument that would allow information exchange with the 
USG; developing a separate agreement or mechanism would "take 
years." 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Sakai further explained Japan Customs is reviewing 
this issue in light of Japan's Customs Law Article 108-2, 
which states Japan Customs can share information with foreign 
customs authorities under the following three conditions 
(paraphrased): 
 
--The foreign customs authority provides to Japan Customs the 
equivalent type of information as it requests from Japan 
Customs; 
 
--The foreign customs authority maintains the same level of 
confidentiality as Japan Customs; and 
 
--Information provided by Japan Customs is not used for 
anything other than its designated purpose. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) To determine whether information sharing on third 
country cargo under the Megaports Initiative would meet the 
conditions above, Sakai said, the GOJ requests responses to 
the four questions it posed to the USG in October 2009 during 
a Megaports delegation's visit to Tokyo.  Sakai noted that 
the USG response to these questions listed below should come 
from CBP. 
 
 
TOKYO 00000257  002 OF 002 
 
 
--Question 1:  How would CBP (and other relevant USG 
authorities) utilize information on containers bound for 
third party countries other than the U.S., especially in 
light of the scope specified in the CMAA? 
 
--Question 2:  Why does the USG (i.e., DOE) want to have 
container numbers? 
 
--Question 3:  How would information on containers bound for 
third party countries other than the United States assist 
Customs operations in the United States? 
 
--Question 4:  From a reciprocal viewpoint, if the USG 
detected anomalies in containers bound for third party 
countries other than Japan, could the USG provide the GOJ 
with equivalent information? 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Sakai said the GOJ wants to work with the USG to 
establish a legal justification to share third-country 
information and hopes the USG will answer the four questions 
above in an "appropriate" way to help make the case.  In 
further urging the USG to respond to the aforementioned GOJ 
queries, Sakai cited CMAA Article 4(3)(b):  "When the Customs 
Administration of either Party considers that available 
information may be relevant to serious customs offenses that 
could involve substantial damage to the economy, public 
health, public security, or any vital interest of the country 
of the other Customs Administration, the former Customs 
Administration shall, upon its own initiative, provide the 
latter Customs information with such information." 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Sakai suggested that, ideally, the USG's responses 
would explain how third country cargo shipment information 
would affect the U.S. economy or public security. 
Specifically, concrete examples of how this cargo information 
would assist "investigation, detection and/or prevention of 
serious offenses against U.S. customs laws" would help Sakai 
convince his superiors to accept a legal basis for 
information-sharing.  (Note:  Sakai also provided emboffs a 
written memorandum, which he emphasized reflected his 
"personal," not official, views.  Post e-mailed the original 
memorandum separately to EAP/J, DOE and DHS/CBP.  End note.) 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Comment:  Although conceding that Megaports is a 
DOE, not CBP, program, the GOJ continues to reiterate its 
desire that GOJ agencies discuss Megaports between 
"equivalent" U.S. counterparts (i.e., MOFA with State, Japan 
Customs with CBP, and MLIT with DOE).  Although this attempt 
to structure GOJ bureaucratic engagement along its own 
familiar inter-agency lines poses challenges for Megaports 
implementation, the more serious concern may be the GOJ 
position that the CMAA is the only available legal mechanism 
for sharing information. 
 
¶9.  (U) Action Request:  Post appreciates the Department's 
assistance in providing an inter-agency response to the GOJ's 
questions posed originally in October 2009.  MOFA asks that 
the USG provide a consolidated response to all four questions 
in a single document. 
ROOS