'Reform without exceptions' should include Japan's departure from diplomacy subservient to the U.S.

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on July 1 published the following statement on the Japan-U.S. summit talks in Washington between Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro and U.S. President George W. Bush.

Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro and President George Bush used their summit meeting as a step toward further strengthening the Japan-U.S. military alliance, the old framework carried over from the previous century. Also, on Japan-U.S. economic relations and the global environment, Prime Minister Koizumi made clear that Japan will follow the U.S. lead.

In the published joint statement, the prime minister and the U.S. president expressed their decision to "intensify consultations at various levels on further steps in security cooperation, building on continuing implementation of the Defense Guidelines." This is ominous because it is meant to pave the way for Japan to join with the U.S. in military action abroad in violation of the Constitution, which is linked to a proposed study of the right to collective self-defense.

Prime Minister Koizumi expressed "understanding" of the U.S. "missile defense" plan which ensures overwhelming U.S. nuclear supremacy and which has the danger of escalating the nuclear arms race. And he promised Japan's continued participation in "cooperative research on ballistic missile defense technologies."

Japan's "understanding" of the dangerous missile defense plan makes Japan's obedience toward the U.S. stand out conspicuously. Not only Russia and China but also European nations such as Germany and France are expressing their criticism and concern about the plan.

The U.S. Bush administration intends to push ahead with the "missile defense" plan which covers the entire world. Japan-U.S. cooperative research on ballistic missile defense technologies will be integrated into this "missile defense" system.

The Japanese government has explained that the U.S. missile defense plan is a genuinely defensive system and said that it doesn't conflict with Japan's exclusively defense-oriented policy. But such an argument is now groundless. The government must stop taking part in the cooperative research immediately.

Prime Minister Koizumi publicly promised the U.S. that Japan will carry out "economic structural reforms," which include the write-offs of non-performing loans held by major banks. A new consultative body to be set up to serve this purpose will allow the U.S. to intervene in and monitor its progress.

The proposal touted as "reform" is two-tiered. It demands that the people endure three burdens: an increase in bankruptcies and unemployment, the adverse change of social service systems, and tax increases. On the other hand, it shows leniency to major corporations and in particular major banks by using 70 trillion yen (564 billion dollars) in public money for supporting banks, and in establishing a new stock-buying body by using 2 trillion yen (16 billion dollars) in public money.

The U.S. has been strengthening its pressure on Japan hoping, to stabilize the speculative financial market and increase U.S. direct investments in the Japanese market. Prime Minister Koizumi has given in to this outside pressure and is now moving towards using it as momentum to quickly implement his structural reforms. This is the way to Japan's economic catastrophe.

On the Kyoto Protocol to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, Koizumi should have expressed in the Japan-U.S. summit Japan's willingness to ratify it and do its utmost to persuade the U.S. to stop its unreasonable attempt to foil the international agreement. To the contrary, however, Prime Minister Koizumi proposed ministerial talks which could be used to impose an amendment to be proposed by Japan and the U.S. This involves a major risk of setting the protocol far backward and even wasting all previous international efforts. The EU, Russia, Eastern European countries, and Canada expressed their intention to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, and if Japan join, it will come into effect. It is impermissible for Japan, the chair of the Kyoto Conference, to betray the confidence of so many.

If Prime Minister Koizumi really calls for "reforms without exceptions," the first thing to be done is to reform Japan's foreign relations which are subordinate to the U.S. The Japanese Communist Party is tasked with getting a majority of the people to support abrogating the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty in the 21st century. Even before this task is achieved, the JCP will do its utmost to change Japan's foreign relations which will influence Asia and the rest of the world by peaceful diplomacy based on independence and self-reliance. (end)