ID :
199880
Mon, 08/08/2011 - 19:23
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/199880
The shortlink copeid
Kan, U.N. chief Ban agree on enhancement of nuclear safety
TOKYO, Aug. 8 Kyodo - Prime Minister Naoto Kan agreed with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon on Monday to strengthen the safety of nuclear energy at the international level by disseminating the lessons to be learned from the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan.
At the end of a meeting opened to the press at Kan's office, Ban expressed hope that ''the Japanese government will contribute positively, constructively to the success'' of the United Nations' high-level meeting on nuclear safety and security in New York on Sept. 22.
Kan said, ''Japan will participate in the meeting and make maximum contributions,'' without specifying whether he would be at the gathering.
Ban, who arrived in Japan on Sunday for a three-day visit, said he was ''encouraged'' by Kan's promise that Japan would share its ''invaluable experiences'' with the rest of the world on ''disaster reduction and preparedness, and also strengthening nuclear safety standards'' in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Kan's prime ministerial schedule has attracted attention as he is under strong pressure from both ruling and opposition party lawmakers to step down by the end of August, when the current parliamentary session ends.
Japan has yet to decide on whether Kan will attend the high-level meeting, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Monday.
''It's preferable to send someone who's high-level to the meeting, but we haven't specifically decided who will attend,'' the top government spokesman said at a news conference.
Later in the day, Ban said at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto that he ''reiterated the importance of the prime minister's participation'' in the high-level meeting and that Kan ''assured me that the Japanese government will contribute and participate proactively.''
But he said Japan and the United Nations ''will have to continue our consultations on this matter.''
The U.N. chief also asked Japan to consider dispatching a Self-Defense Forces' engineering unit to South Sudan, which gained independence last month, as part of a U.N. peacekeeping mission in the newborn African country.
Ban said the activities of SDF engineers in Haiti, which was hit by a massive earthquake in January last year, as members of a U.N. peacekeeping mission has been widely appreciated due to their ''great efficiency, disciplines and hard work.''
He said the most needed area in South Sudan is ''to help build infrastructure'' and called for support by Japan, which has ''capacity to mobilize all these equipments'' for infrastructure construction.
Matsumoto said the Japanese government has been looking into the possibility of sending SDF members to South Sudan ''by comprehensively examining'' various conditions including the readiness in the African country to accept Japanese peacekeepers and strongpoint of the SDF.
Ban said he will discuss the matter with Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa on Tuesday. Ban said he is aware that the SDF members are now ''heavily occupied'' with helping recovery work in areas affected by the March calamity, but said, ''I sincerely hope this will be considered favorably.''
Referring to a famine that has been affecting the Horn of Africa, Ban said he ''asked whether Japan could do more'' in providing necessary assistance and funding. ''I'm encouraged by the prime minister's and foreign minister's assurances that they will look into this matter positively,'' he said.
Earlier in the day, Ban visited Fukushima Prefecture to encourage people affected by the March disaster and subsequent nuclear crisis.
''I came here to express my solidarity, the United Nations' solidarity,'' Ban told Fukushima Gov. Yuhei Sato. ''The whole world is supporting you and trying to help, together with the United Nations.''
At the end of a meeting opened to the press at Kan's office, Ban expressed hope that ''the Japanese government will contribute positively, constructively to the success'' of the United Nations' high-level meeting on nuclear safety and security in New York on Sept. 22.
Kan said, ''Japan will participate in the meeting and make maximum contributions,'' without specifying whether he would be at the gathering.
Ban, who arrived in Japan on Sunday for a three-day visit, said he was ''encouraged'' by Kan's promise that Japan would share its ''invaluable experiences'' with the rest of the world on ''disaster reduction and preparedness, and also strengthening nuclear safety standards'' in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Kan's prime ministerial schedule has attracted attention as he is under strong pressure from both ruling and opposition party lawmakers to step down by the end of August, when the current parliamentary session ends.
Japan has yet to decide on whether Kan will attend the high-level meeting, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Monday.
''It's preferable to send someone who's high-level to the meeting, but we haven't specifically decided who will attend,'' the top government spokesman said at a news conference.
Later in the day, Ban said at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto that he ''reiterated the importance of the prime minister's participation'' in the high-level meeting and that Kan ''assured me that the Japanese government will contribute and participate proactively.''
But he said Japan and the United Nations ''will have to continue our consultations on this matter.''
The U.N. chief also asked Japan to consider dispatching a Self-Defense Forces' engineering unit to South Sudan, which gained independence last month, as part of a U.N. peacekeeping mission in the newborn African country.
Ban said the activities of SDF engineers in Haiti, which was hit by a massive earthquake in January last year, as members of a U.N. peacekeeping mission has been widely appreciated due to their ''great efficiency, disciplines and hard work.''
He said the most needed area in South Sudan is ''to help build infrastructure'' and called for support by Japan, which has ''capacity to mobilize all these equipments'' for infrastructure construction.
Matsumoto said the Japanese government has been looking into the possibility of sending SDF members to South Sudan ''by comprehensively examining'' various conditions including the readiness in the African country to accept Japanese peacekeepers and strongpoint of the SDF.
Ban said he will discuss the matter with Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa on Tuesday. Ban said he is aware that the SDF members are now ''heavily occupied'' with helping recovery work in areas affected by the March calamity, but said, ''I sincerely hope this will be considered favorably.''
Referring to a famine that has been affecting the Horn of Africa, Ban said he ''asked whether Japan could do more'' in providing necessary assistance and funding. ''I'm encouraged by the prime minister's and foreign minister's assurances that they will look into this matter positively,'' he said.
Earlier in the day, Ban visited Fukushima Prefecture to encourage people affected by the March disaster and subsequent nuclear crisis.
''I came here to express my solidarity, the United Nations' solidarity,'' Ban told Fukushima Gov. Yuhei Sato. ''The whole world is supporting you and trying to help, together with the United Nations.''
