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20 September 1998
New York, New York
1. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Secretary of Defense William Cohen,
Minister for Foreign Affairs Masahiko
Koumura, and Minister of State for Defense Fukushiro Nukaga convened the
Security Consultative Committee (SCC) in New
York on September 20, 1998, for consultations and policy coordination on
issues of bilateral interest. They discussed regional
issues, focusing on the security environment in Northeast Asia, and issues
concerning the bilateral security relationship.
2. Both sides reaffirmed their abiding commitment to the U.S.-Japan alliance
and reviewed the progress made in strengthening
the security relationship since the issuance of the U.S.-Japan Joint
Declaration on Security in April 1996. The four Ministers
expressed their satisfaction and confidence in the strength and durability
of the bilateral relationship, which is vital not only to the
security of the U.S. and Japan, but to the stability of the Asia-Pacific
region as well. The Ministers discussed the security
environment in the Asia-Pacific region and defense policies and military
postures to meet security requirements in this region.
The SCC reaffirmed the importance of the principles outlined in the
above-mentioned Joint Declaration.
3. The SCC reconfirmed both governments' perception that the August 31
missile launch by North Korea presents a serious
threat to the security interests of our two countries and to the region. The
Ministers called on North Korea not to develop, test,
launch or deploy missiles, or export missiles and related material and
technology. They affirmed their support for the Agreed
Framework and KEDO as the best means for preventing the danger of nuclear
proliferation on the Korean Peninsula.
Secretary Albright and Secretary Cohen confirmed that the U.S. Government
will fully respect the position of the Government
of Japan and consult closely in implementing the Agreed Framework, including
the Light Water Reactor project.
4. The Ministers affirmed that strong and healthy U.S.-Japan ties are
essential to furthering our respective cooperation with
China on regional and global issues. They also reviewed other regional
issues, including the situation in Russia and Southeast
Asia. They noted the importance of close U.S.-Japan cooperation on regional
issues.
5. The Ministers reiterated their intention to take all necessary steps to
ensure the effectiveness of the Guidelines for U.S.-Japan
Defense Cooperation, which are vital to the ability of both sides to respond
to security challenges in the region. They discussed
progress to date under the Guidelines, including bilateral planning. The
Japanese side confirmed its intention to seek early
passage of the Guidelines legislation package.
6. Both sides emphasized the importance of Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD).
The Ministers reviewed the progress of bilateral
studies, and they will proceed with further work in the direction of
conducting cooperative research.
7. The four Ministers discussed issues related to the stationing of U.S.
forces in Japan. They recognized the importance of
continuing efforts by all concerned parties to ensure good neighbor
relations between U.S. forces and host communities for the
smooth and effective operation of U.S.-Japan security arrangements, as well
as the essential need for U.S. forces to train and
maintain readiness. The Ministers expressed their continuing commitment to
implement steadily the SACO Final Report and
highlighted the progress made on many key provisions.
8. Secretaries Albright and Cohen expressed their appreciation for Japan's
host nation support as a key contribution to the
bilateral relationship and regional security.
This
material is produced independently for NTI by the James Martin
Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of
International Studies and does not necessarily reflect the
opinions of and has not been independently verified by NTI or
its directors, officers, employees, agents. Copyright © 2007 by
MIIS.
