Japan in call to U.S. to retain nukes

WASHINGTON--Despite Japan's longstanding calls for the elimination of nuclear weapons, government officials in recent months have been voicing concern that progress in disarmament could erode the credibility of the U.S. nuclear umbrella, upon which Japan relies.

As a result, officials in the previous administration headed by Prime Minister Taro Aso began calling on Washington to maintain its nuclear arsenal, despite Japan's "allergy" to nuclear weapons stemming from the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

The revelation was made by James Schlesinger, a former U.S. defense secretary who until recently served as vice chairman of the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States.

Between last year and May 2009, when the commission issued its final report, several Japanese diplomats raised concerns about the reliability of the U.S. nuclear umbrella if progress was made on nuclear disarmament.

At that time Japan was governed by a coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party in partnership with New Komeito.

The U.S. congressional commission was established in May 2008 under the administration of President George W. Bush. The bipartisan panel consulted with experts in compiling its final report.

The report will serve as the basis for the Nuclear Posture Review now being conducted by the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, who himself has made a strident call for a world without nuclear weapons. The review would set U.S. policy on nuclear weapons for the next five to 10 years and is expected to be released early next year.

In an interview with The Asahi Shimbun, Schlesinger said Japanese officials questioned by the commission expressed concerns about whether the United States would maintain its nuclear umbrella to protect Japan.

Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists was also told by several commissioners that Japanese officials had raised concerns about the U.S. nuclear umbrella.

According to Kristensen, the Japanese officials classified the nuclear weapons they wanted the United States to maintain into six different categories, such as reliability and flexibility.

They presented a written document that listed some of the nuclear capabilities they wanted maintained, such as advanced nuclear warheads, nuclear submarines and B-52 bombers.

In an appendix to the commission's final report is a list of foreign officials who were consulted in compiling the document. The list includes four Japanese diplomats who worked out of the embassy in Washington.

In the final report, the commission recommended the establishment of a forum for close dialogue between Japan and the United States on the issue.

While Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has said he would seek a nuclear-free world, he has also indicated understanding about the need for a nuclear deterrent, calling it "one way of thinking to deal with current threats."

It remains to be seen whether the new coalition government centered on the Democratic Party of Japan will stake out a new position on the U.S. nuclear umbrella.(IHT/Asahi: November 7,2009)