New report urges Japan, U.S. to mull joint security declaration next year+

WASHINGTON, March 10 Kyodo -
Japan and the United States should mull issuing a new joint security
declaration to celebrate their alliance's 50th anniversary next year in a bid
to elevate bilateral cooperation to a higher plane, according to a new report
by a Washington think tank.
The call was one of the recommendations made to the new U.S. administration of
President Barack Obama by the report, titled, ''The United States and the
Asia-Pacific Region: Security Strategy for the Obama Administration.''
''The U.S.-Japan alliance is the foundation for American engagement in the
Asia-Pacific,'' says the 82-page report, published by the Center for a New
American Security.
Noting many of the challenges that have confronted the alliance over the past
decade have arisen due to a lack of clarity from Tokyo and Washington on
alliance-based cooperation and commitment, it says a new joint security
declaration ''will help manage expectations and reduce friction within the
alliance.''
Both countries, it says, should consider next year, which marks the 50th
anniversary of the current Japan-U.S. security arrangements, a document that
moves beyond the 1996 Japan-U.S. joint declaration on security alliance
''toward a more forward-looking horizon for security cooperation.''
The 1996 document, signed by then Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and
U.S. President Bill Clinton in Tokyo, redefined the role of the bilateral
security arrangements and increased security cooperation.
The CNAS report may serve as a basis of the Obama administration's Japan policy
as one of the co-chairs of the think tank, Michelle Flournoy, became
undersecretary of defense for policy and another, Kurt Campbell, is expected to
be assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs.
It identifies as a ''high priority'' Japan's efforts to complete the planned
move of Marines to Guam from Japan's Okinawa Prefecture by 2014 as set by
Washington and Tokyo.
''Washington is not just looking to Tokyo to do its share, but to honor its
promises,'' it says. ''Trust is the glue of an alliance; failure to live up to
previous commitments will erode the foundation of the partnership.''
The report urges the United States to reaffirm its role as a security guarantor
of Japan and decide at an early date whether to sell the state-of-the-art F-22A
Raptor stealth fighter jet to Japan. Export of the F-22A is currently forbidden
under U.S. law.
''The administration must act quickly to determine the fate of F-22A sales to
Japan,'' it says. ''If the decision is made to sell F-22s to any ally, Japan
should be among the first in line.''
It also presses Japan to enact an information security law to protect against
the disclosure of intelligence. The lack of such a law, it says, inhibits U.S.
willingness to share sensitive intelligence with Japan.
Furthermore, the report encourages Tokyo to be ''more aggressive'' in the
pursuit of regional initiatives, such as in promoting maritime safety and
security, disaster relief and humanitarian assistance, development aid, or
through national capacity building in a broad array of fields ranging from
export controls to product safety.
''Japan has particularly advanced capabilities in the fields of energy
conservation and efficiency as well as 'green' technologies and environmental
protection,'' it says. ''Japan should exploit its advantages in these areas to
contribute to regional security as well as develop a higher regional profile.''
On the economic front, the report recommends that Japan and the United States
look into the pros and cons of a bilateral free trade agreement. But it also
cautions that any deal must be a ''substantive'' one that sets a ''gold
standard'' for other accords.
''We endorse in principle all steps that broaden the base of the alliance and
thicken the web of bilateral relations and thus urge Tokyo and Washington to
carefully consider the benefits -- and potential downsides -- of a U.S.-Japan
FTA,'' it says.
''Any such agreement must be a substantive accord, however, and not mere window
dressing; a trade agreement between our two countries should set a gold
standard for other deals,'' it says.
==Kyodo
2009-03-10 20:42:25