Japan must not support a war on Iraq: JCP Fudesaka

Japanese Communist Party Fudesaka Hideyo criticized Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro for expressing support for a U.N. Security Council resolution that the United States and Britain have proposed with the aim of giving the green light to war on Iraq.

Fudesaka took up this issue during his question time in the House of Councilors Budget Committee meeting on March 6.

Currently, the new U.S.-British resolution and a France-proposed memorandum calling for a continuation of the U.N. weapons inspection are on a collision course in the U.N. Security Council.

Fudesaka told Koizumi that the new resolution virtually permits the use of force to settle the problem, and asked the prime minister again if Japan will support the resolution.

Hinting that Japan would approve of the use of force, Koizumi said, "The resolution is to urge the Hussein regime to be aware that a war may be inevitable, depending on the circumstances."

On the one hand, the Japanese government gives its consent to the war, but on the other hand it glosses over Japan's decisive position before the people by using the phrase, "international coordination," Fudesaka pointed out.

While a majority of countries call for a peaceful solution to the Iraq question, only a handful governments declare support for the new U.S.-Britain resolution, said Fudesaka.

Fudesaka defined what Koizumi says is "international coordination" as "submission to the United States."

Japan should persuade the United States to choose a way for peace and not try to draw governments in the United Nations from the memorandum faction. Fudesaka stressed. (end)