WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2003
Japan pushes for support of US-led war in Iraq
AP
TOKYO: In a surprisingly public diplomatic offensive, Japan's leaders are working the phones to try to persuade UN Security Council member nations to rally behind the United States' position on Iraq.
During the past few days, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has called five of the six undecided council members - Pakistan, Chile, Guinea, Cameroon and Mexico - to persuade them to support Washington. He's also warned that a divided Security Council could undermine the UN's authority, officials say.
Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi, meanwhile, has phoned Angola, the sixth member with a key swing vote, and has spoken with German and Russian diplomats about their objections to US-led military action to disarm Iraq.
Japan's attempts to sway the council debate came as diplomats at the United Nations rushed to find a compromise that might allow Iraqi President Saddam Hussein more time to prove he has disposed of weapons of mass destruction.
The diplomatic push marks a rare attempt by Japan, which doesn't have a seat on the 15-member council, to assert itself on the world political stage.
Although it is one of the United Nations' biggest financial contributors, Japan has wielded little political weight, allowing commerce rather than ideology to dictate foreign policy.
But analysts said Koizumi was eager to avoid the sort of criticism Japan faced from the United States, its main ally, during the 1991 Gulf War, when Tokyo was accused of ``cheque book diplomacy'' - offering money but little else of substance.
``Koizumi has said he considers international cooperation vital in pressuring Iraq, and he needs to show that his actions are consistent with that,'' said Masaru Ikei, a professor emeritus of international affairs at Keio University in Tokyo.
``It's just not clear whether Japan can have any impact on the Security Council's discussions,'' he said.
Koizumi's backers stress that Tokyo is doing all it can, given a post World War II ban on the use of Japanese troops in anything but defensive or peacekeeping roles.
``We'll do what we can,'' said Misako Kaji, Koizumi's spokeswoman. ``There are all sorts of possibilities.'' So far, however, most council members have been unwilling to budge. The United States, Britain and Spain, which co-sponsored the resolution, want to give Saddam only until March 17 to demonstrate his commitment to disarm or face a possible military strike.
France, Russia, China and Germany have stridently opposed it, saying UN inspections are working and that Iraq can be disarmed peacefully. Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Guinea, Mexico and Pakistan have proposed an alternative ultimatum that would give Saddam 45 days to prove he is complying with UN demands.
Tokyo's strong endorsement of the US-led war on terror has already gone beyond previous precedents.
Since November 2001, Japan has had a fleet of ships in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean to transport fuel and supplies to US and British vessels involved in rounding up remnants of al-Qaida and the Taliban.
But Tokyo has made clear that its rearguard support, approved by Japan's parliament shortly after the 2001 terror attacks in the United States, is only for the anti-terror campaign.
And, Japan has not tried to draft a compromise resolution to resolve the impasse on Iraq, as Britain and Canada have done this week.
Tokyo's strategy has focused instead on considerations of US$1 billion to US$1.3 billion in aid to countries bordering Iraq - Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Syria and the Palestinian authority - should a war in Iraq break out, according to Japanese media reports.
The assistance, which might also go to Lebanon, would go toward water systems and power lines, and would help those countries defray the costs of taking in refugees from Iraq.
Koizumi's decision to stand by Bush could expose him to an angry backlash among voters at home.
War is a touchy topic in Japan, where memories of World War II are still painful and opinion polls have indicated that a majority of Japanese remain opposed to an attack.
``The question is how far Koizumi will go to back its allies in a war. If he sends troops, and there are casualties, he could lose public support and be forced to resign,'' Ikei said.
Copyright 2003 Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved.