REFILING: 6TH LD: Abe, Bush agree to accelerate missile defense, cooperate on N. Korea
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President George W. Bush reaffirmed their nations’ strong alliance in their first summit Saturday, agreeing to accelerate cooperation on ballistic missile defense and coordinate policies at the six-way talks to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.
”We agreed to strengthen and accelerate cooperation in ballistic missile defense and we will instruct our foreign and defense ministers to study this matter,” Abe told reporters, adding he had ”meaningful talks” with Bush on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Hanoi.
”The relationship between Japan and the United States is strong and we will keep it that way,” Bush said. ”The strong relationship between our two countries is good for the security of the East.”
North Korea’s Oct. 9 nuclear test and missile launches in July prompted Japan and the United States, which began joint BMD research in 1999, to seek to speed up the deployment of the missile defense shield in Japan.
Bush reaffirmed the U.S. ”defense commitment” for Japan and the two leaders also agreed to advance steadily with the agreed plan of the realignment for the U.S. military presence in Japan, the officials said.
In response to Abe’s request for U.S. cooperation in Japan’s bid for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, Bush expressed his support and said details should be worked out between the two governments, Japanese officials said.
The two leaders spent a significant amount of time discussing North Korea, with the president telling reporters that the two reaffirmed ”common commitments” to making the six-party talks successful.
Abe added they agreed to take a coordinated approach and aim to achieve concrete results at an early stage in the talks, which are expected to resume next month.
”The president indicated that he and the prime minister saw eye-to-eye on the North Korean issue,” White House National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said. ”North Korea has a choice.”
Encouraging North Korea to take a positive choice requires ”a mix of both pressure and positive incentive, and the consequences of the decision North Korea makes,” Hadley said.
Regarding the Iran nuclear issue, Abe and Bush agreed to work closely together to resolve the problem, according to the officials.
On Iraq, Abe reassured Bush that Japan will continue to support reconstruction there, while the president vowed that the United States will not leave Iraq until its mission is completed, the officials said. Japan has been one of the most supportive allies of Washington in the U.S.-led war on Iraq.
On the economic front, Bush expressed hopes of promoting an APEC-wide free trade zone and Abe responded by saying Japan believes it would be helpful to consider the framework, the Japanese officials said.
In response to Bush’s invitation to visit the United States at an early date, Abe said he looks forward to doing so ‘’some time next year.”
Abe, who took office in September, is hoping to follow in his predecessor Junichiro Koizumi’s footsteps in developing a close personal friendship with Bush.
Ahead of an hour-long working lunch, Abe and Bush met one-on-one for about 20 minutes, Hadley said. A senior Japanese official who accompanied Abe at the lunch said the two leaders, despite meeting only for the first time, ”looked as if they have been longtime friends.”
Hadley told reporters Bush complimented Abe for the ‘’strong start of his administration,” noting that the president had in mind Abe’s trip to China and South Korea to strengthen Japan’s ties with the two countries.
Abe and Bush were later joined by South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun for trilateral talks, where they agreed to coordinate policies on the North Korean issue and to work with China, chair of the six-party talks, in order to achieve positive results at the negotiations.
Also Saturday, Abe held separate bilateral meetings with Roh, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Australian Prime Minister John Howard.
Japan, the United States, South Korea, China and Russia are involved in the six-way talks with North Korea.