Press Conference

Press Conference by the Defense Minister (08:45-08:52 A.M. December 1, 2009): Press Conference by the Defense Minister (Doorstepping)
Time & Date: 08:45-08:52 A.M. December 1, 2009
Place: In front of the Cabinet Meeting Room in the House

(This is a provisional translation of an announcement by the Defense Minister and the abstract of the Q&A session at the subsequent press conference for reference purposes only)
The original text is in Japanese.

1. Announcements

None.

2. Questions and Answers

Question:
Concerning peacekeeping operations (PKO), we hear that the Government is considering a dispatch of several hundred troops of the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) to the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS). What is the current progress on this?

Minister:
I have seen it in the news reports, but not directly heard about it.

Question:
Do you mean that the Ministry of Defense is not actually considering it?

Minister:
The Ministry is always studying about PKO from various perspectives, but the Government or the Ministry has no set policy for this issue. Therefore, there is no government decision that can be reported with credibility to the people. The Chief Cabinet Secretary is making a similar statement. I will not call it a false report, but I think the report is extremely misleading. Everyone in the Ministry of Defense says that they have not been interviewed on this issue.

Question:
Concerning the issue of Futenma, what will be the schedule of the minister-level working group meetings going forward?

Minister:
Since we have not much time left, first there will be a working-level meeting this weekend. Depending on how it goes, there is a possibility that it will move on to a minister-level meeting.

Question:
We hear that both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense are considering measures for further alleviation of local burdens. Do you think that Japan and the US will reach a certain agreement on this?

Minister:
I cannot make comments on it at the current stage.

(For the remainder of the press conference, please refer to the Japanese version.)