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Defence to top Japan, US talks
Japan's defence and foreign ministers are in Washington for key security talks with US counterparts. There is speculation that one topic on the agenda is the Taiwan Strait, an important flashpoint in the region. According to a draft proposal seen by US and Japanese press, Taiwan will be identified as a mutual security concern - a move set to anger its rival, China. | Just mentioning the name set's them off. |
But a Japanese Foreign Ministry press spokesman refused to confirm this ahead of Saturday's talks. Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura and Defence Minister Yoshinori Ono will join with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in declaring security in the Taiwan Strait as a "common strategic objective", according to the Washington Post. The revision, which may be announced as part of a joint statement after the ministers' meeting, reflects growing concern in Washington and Tokyo about China's increasing military power. A Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman would only confirm that Japan had long sought "a common strategic understanding of the [Asia-Pacific] region".
Posted by: Steve 2005-02-18 |
