By Nicole Gaouette and Takashi Hirokawa
May 21 (Bloomberg) — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said North Korea’s sinking of a South Korean warship “cannot go unanswered” and the response by the international community must not be “business as usual.”
The evidence that North Korea fired a torpedo and sank the ship is “overwhelming and condemning,” Clinton said at a press briefing in Tokyo today with Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada. “There must be an international, not just a regional, but an international response.”
The two diplomats offered unqualified support for South Korea after an international panel yesterday issued a report saying evidence provided “conclusive” proof of North Korea’s role in the March 26 sinking, which killed 46 sailors. South Korea’s National Security Council met today as the North threatened to sever all ties and reiterated a threat of war.
“The importance of the Japan-U.S. alliance is increasing as the sinking of the South Korean ship shows the instability” in the region, Okada said.
Clinton stopped in Tokyo for four hours on her way to China where she will take part in talks on climate change, the Afghan war and sanctions to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Okada said Japan is studying an agreement Iran struck with Turkey and Brazil to hand over half of its enriched-uranium stockpile in exchange for fuel. In the meantime, Japan supports the U.S. pursuit of a fourth round of UN sanctions on Iran, he said.
‘Eye to Eye’
“We see eye to eye,” Okada said. Clinton said “the burden is on Iran” to live up to its obligations “or face growing isolation.”
Clinton and Okada also discussed a dispute over where to relocate an American military facility on Okinawa. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who initially called for moving the Futenma Marine Base off the island in response to local sentiment, said earlier this month he will transfer the base within Okinawa, largely in line with a 2006 bilateral agreement.
Clinton said both countries share the same goals on moving the base, and are seeking an “operationally viable and politically sustainable” solution.
Japan and the U.S. will release as early as May 28 a joint agreement on relocating Futenma, the Yomiuri newspaper said today, without citing anyone. Okada today said both sides would make every effort to conclude the matter by the end of the month.
War Threats
South Korea yesterday demanded a “stern” global response the sinking of the 1,200-ton naval vessel Cheonan. Kim Jong Il’s regime, already under UN sanctions for its second nuclear test last year, threatened “all-out war” if the international body imposes additional restrictions.
Tension on the Korean peninsula is overshadowing the planned centerpiece of Clinton’s Asia trip. She and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will be in Beijing May 23-25 to take part in the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue.
While Geithner will press the Chinese to improve domestic demand and address the value of the yuan, Clinton’s agenda includes climate change, energy security and Iran. She then will go to Seoul to discuss the South Korean report.
The U.S. will be in “deep and constant consultations, not only between the United States and Japan, but also South Korea, China and others to determine our response” to North Korea, Clinton said.
Improving Strained Ties
The talks in China come as both countries are trying to improve ties after strains earlier this year. Chinese censorship of Google Inc., the Mountain View, California-based Internet- search company, a Washington visit by the Dalai Lama and disagreements over China’s currency weighed on relations.
“It felt like both countries went right up to the edge then looked over into the abyss below and backed away from it,” said Taiya Smith, a senior research fellow at the Carnegie Endowment in Washington. “Now the attitude is, we want to be partners, can we use our time at the highest level to engage on issues in ways that are in each countries’ best interests.”
Clinton will start the China portion of her fifth trip to Asia in Shanghai, host to the 2010 World Expo, where she will focus on commercial diplomacy and visit the U.S. pavilion.
To contact the reporters on this story: Nicole Gaouette in Tokyo at ngaouette@bloomberg.net; Takashi Hirokawa in Tokyo at thirokawa@bloomberg.net
Colonel6's Blog 