This week in Washington

THE ROLE OF NORTH KOREA AND TAIWAN IN KOREA-CHINA RELATIONS. 5/29, 2:00-3:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Korea Economic Institute (KEI). Speakers: Kwei-Bo Huang, Visiting Fellow, Foreign Policy, Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies, The Brookings Institution; Yong-Hyun Kim, Assistant Professor, Dongguk University; Moderated by Randall Schriver, President and CEO, Project 2049 Institute.

IS AMERICA’S AGE OF DESCENT USHERING IN A G-ZERO WORLD? 5/29, 6:00-8:00pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Carnegie Endowment. Speakers: Edward Luce, Washington Columnist, Commentator, Financial Times and, Author, Time to Start Thinking: America in the Age of Descent; Ian Bremmer, President, Eurasia Group, author. Moderator: David Rothkopf, Visiting Scholar, Carnegie Endowment, CEO and editor, Foreign Policy magazine.

BUDGET PRIORITIES FOR 21ST CENTURY DEFENSE: A CONVERSATION WITH DEPUTY SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ASHTON B. CARTER. 5/30, 10:45-11:45am, Washington, DC. Sponsor: American Enterprise Institute (AEI). Speakers: Thomas Donnelly, AEI; Ashton B, Carter, US Department of Defense.

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN NORTHEAST ASIA: A COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE. 5/30, 10:00am-Noon, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Brookings Institution, CNAPS. Speakers: Kwei-Bo Huang, Visiting Fellow, Center for Northeast Asia Studies, Brookings, Associate Professor, Department of Diplomacy, National Chengchi University; Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, Korea Society; Changian Jiang, Visiting Scholar, Weatherhead East Asia Institute, Columbia University, Associate Professor, Department of International Politics, Fudan University; Nancy Snow (Live via video feed), Fulbright Professor, Sophia University, Tokyo, Professor of Communications, California, State University, Fullerton. .

THE FUTURE OF INDIA'S FOREIGN POLICY. 5/30, 2:00-3:00pm Washington, DC. Sponsor: Brookings Institution. Speakers: Yashwant Sinha, former minister of external affairs and finance of the Republic of India.

INDIA-US STRATEGIC DIALOGUE: EXPANDING HORIZONS OF BILATERAL PARTNERSHIP. 5/30, 4:00-5:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Atlantic Council's South Asia Center. Speakers: Indian Ambassador to the United States Nirupama Rao; and Shuja Nawaz, director of the South Asia Center at the Atlantic Council.

CHINESE INVESTMENT IN NORTH AMERICAN ENERGY. 5/31, 9:00-11:00am , Washington, DC. Sponsor: Wilson Center (WWC) Canada Institute and China Environment Forum. Speakers: Wenran Jiang, associate professor at the University of Alberta; Bo Kong, assistant research professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Relations; Jeff Kucharski, assistant deputy minister for Alberta Energy; Adam Lysenko, research associate for the Rhodium Group; and Jennifer Turner, director of the China Environment Forum at WWC.

THE COMMON DEFENSE: WHAT IT MEANS TO CONSERVATIVES. 5/31. 10:00am , Washington, DC. Sponsor: Heritage Foundation. Speakers: Rep. Trent Franks, R-AZ; Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell; Alison Acosta Fraser, director of the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at Heritage; and Kim Holmes, vice president for foreign and defense policy studies, and director of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies at Heritage

FOUNDATIONS OF THE AMERICAN CENTURY: THE FORD, CARNEGIE, and ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATIONS IN THE  RISE OF AMERICAN POWER. 5/31, Noon-2:00pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Hudson Institute. Speakers: author Inderjeet Parmar, professor of government at the University of Manchester; Thomas Asher, program director at the Social Science Research Council; Kathleen McCarthy, professor of American history at the Graduate Center of CUNY; and Patricia Rosenfield, Carnegie scholar at the Rockefeller Archives Center

UNDERSTANDING THE SMITH-MUNDT MODERNIZATION ACT, 5/31, 3:00-4:00pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Heritage Foundation. Speakers: Juliana Geran Pilon, director of the Center for Culture and Security, and professor of politics and culture at the Institute of World Politics; and Joseph Duffey, former director of USIA.

FOUR YEARS AFTER THE MELTDOWN: THE GLOBAL ECONOMY AND FINANCIAL SYSTEM STILL AT RISK. 5/31, Noon-1:00pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Center For National Policy. Speaker: Phil Angelides, Chair, Financial Inquiry Commission. .

CHINA AIRBORNE. 5/31, 6:30-8:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: World Affairs Council. Speaker: James Fallows, author.

MEETING THE NEXT CHALLENGES ON NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION AND DISARMAMENT. 6/4, 9:00am-1:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Arms Control Association (ACC). Speakers: Dirk Jameson, Former Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff of the US Strategic Command and member of the Consensus for American Security; Jon Wolfsthal, Deputy Director, James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Former Member, National Security Staff; Trine Flockhart, Senior Researcher on Defense and Security, Danish Institute for International Studies; Thomas Pickering, Career Ambassador; Hossein Mousavian, Ambassador, Former Iranian Nuclear Envoy; Tarja Cronberg, Chair, European Parliament Delegation for Relations with Iran; Rose Gottemoeller, Acting Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security and New START Negotiator.

Whither Russia: Looking East And Ready To Embrace It

Siberia

By Jacob Kipp, Adjunct Professor at the University of Kansas, Eurasia Daily Monitor, Jamestown Foundation, 5/14/12 [reprinted with permission]

 The Arab Spring, especially the civil war in Libya and NATO’s “humanitarian intervention” in that conflict, has brought about much closer diplomatic cooperation between China and Russia. Their cooperation has consequently increased in response to efforts by the United States, its allies, and the Arab League under the banner of the “Friends of Syria” to bring about the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. In the latest sign of this cooperation, Russian and Chinese ambassadors to the UN Security Council held firm in their opposition to any resolution that calls for UN observers to the cease fire in Syria and unilaterally condemned the Assad government. When the resolution was changed to fit Chinese and Russian demands, it passed the Security Council by a vote of 15 to none.

 

But beyond tactical cooperation over the crisis in Syria, the major question is the following: What is the overall content of Sino-Russian relations as President Putin begins his third term in office and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) undergoes its own leadership transformation? Some in Moscow see the current fall of Bo Xilai and his family as a shift to the left in response to the corruption scandal, which has raised questions about further conflicts within the Chinese Politburo during a period of leadership transition (Krasnaia Zvezda, April 24). Dmitri Trenin, a long-time commentator on Russian foreign policy at the Carnegie Endowment Center in Moscow, has asked the question whether over the last decade Sino-Russian relations have undergone a profound transformation to one of “faithful friends.” Trenin acknowledges that the great shift in their relations was the emergence of China as both a great power and an economic dynamo, reshaping Asia’s role in the global economy. Russia has had to accept this shift in the balance of power. China presents a set of opportunities and challenges for Russia. “For today’s Russia, relations with China open up a series of positive possibilities in the economic and political sphere: this country can serve as a market for its raw materials, an engine of economic development for the Russian Far East, and an important non-western partner in the global arena,” Trenin writes (Dmitri Trenin, Carnegie Moscow Center, 2012).

 

At the same time there are serious challenges, especially regarding Siberia, connected to relations with China; and there is, as yet, no answer to them. Before Moscow can work out a long-term concept of relations with Beijing, it must create a genuine development strategy for the country and a concrete vision for Russia’s role in the world. As Russia has declined in power, China has increasingly become the dominant regional power, surpassing Japan economically, and has emerged as the major exporting power in the world. Today, there is even discussion of China as the economic engine to overcome the global recession and the source of capital to stabilize the crisis of the Eurozone. In a multi-polar international system, Moscow and Beijing share some common assessments of international issues, such as a suspicion toward Western humanitarian intervention and a support for non-intervention in the affairs of sovereign states. Russia, however, remains Eurasian in focus and, as Trenin suggests, still has issues to resolve over its own economy, society and state. Russia will have to yield to China’s assertions of rights and privileges around its perimeter, even as these assertions carry risks of conflicts with other states and powers (Trenin, Carnegie Moscow Center, 2012).

This is not to say that there are not concerns in both Moscow and Beijing about the future of their relations. The Russian press carried an extensive critique of the Russian economy as laid out by Chinese experts. Strategy-2020, a report prepared for then President-Elect Vladimir Putin, sees China as an economic challenge to Russia, “pushing Russia out of its traditional markets and reducing its political weight” (Russia Today, March 19). The Russian press has also reported overt criticism from the Chinese government on six major defects in the Russian economy, which limit Russia’s ability to be a sound economic partner. These defects, which China expects Putin’s administration to address include the following: 1) over dependence on the export of raw materials and energy, 2) an unfavorable business climate and the erection of barriers to investment, 3) complications of the situation with regard to technology, science and business, 4) undeveloped competition and the domination of natural monopolies, 5) the low level of the development of social capital, the weak capacity for self-organization and for self-regulation of private companies, and 6) no improvement in demographic indicators and a serious shortage in labor (Nezavisimaia Gazeta, April 17).

 

There are also those who question Russia’s military cooperation with China, especially the sale of advanced technology. Plans to sell the advanced, fifth-generation Sukhoi PAK-FA fighter to China came in for sharp criticism as a case of commercial profits trumping geostrategic common sense (Nezavisimoe Voennoe Obozrenie, March 16). Aleksandr Khramchikhin, writing in Nezavisimoe Voennoe Obozrenie, continuously warns of the pace of China’s military modernization and the potential threat such forces represent to Russia’s position in the Far East and Siberia (Nezavisimoe Voennoe Obozrenie, December 30, 2011).

 

At the same time, there have been others proposing a much closer strategic partnership, or even a military alliance between Russia and China, overtly aimed at countering the US and NATO. Russian Army Colonel-General Leonid Ivashov (retired) championed such a geostrategic alliance when speaking at the meeting defense experts with Prime Minister Putin in late February at Sarov, a former closed city associated with Russia’s nuclear weapons program. Ivashov, the President of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems and an ally of the “eurasianist” Aleksandr Dugin, spoke of the need for the closest strategic ties with China to include active cooperation to overthrow US geopolitical plans. Citing the German geopolitical thinker and ideologue, Karl Schmitt, Ivashov suggested that Putin was beginning to understand the need to counter US-NATO plans and went so far as to suggest an agreement for the simultaneous launch of Russian and Chinese nuclear-armed missiles in case of US-NATO aggression. Ivashov remains a fringe spokesman for such views with the Russian elite (Nakanune.ru, February 27)

 

The general direction of Sino-Russian relations, however, has been toward Hu Jintao’s “strategic partnership.” Two recent regional developments address key aspects of this partnership. One is Putin’s emphasis on the need to ensure the further economic development of the depressed regions of Siberia and the Far East. One of Vladimir Putin’s chief priorities in his electoral campaign was the development of this region. The new President’s first priority is to restore Russia’s position as a world power, and the development of Siberia and the Russian Far East is the key to achieving this position (Novaia Gazeta, April 13). Thus, under Putin’s directive, the Ministry of Economics drafted a new law covering the creation of a new state-owned company that would operate under the President and undertake the economic development of Siberia and the Far East, which would include 16 territorial units and 60 percent of the territory of the Russian Federation. The areas under the administration of the new state-owned company would include a number of republics and oblasts: the republics of Aktai, Burytia, Sakha (Iakutiia), Tyva and Khakasiia, the Zabaikal’, Kamchatka, Krasnoiarsk, Primorsk, Kabarovsk and Amur Krais, the oblasts of Amur, Irkutsk, Magadansk, Sakhalinsk and Evreisk, as well as the Chukotsk Autonomous Region (Kommersant, April 20). The new state corporation is expected to exist for 25 years and guide the integration of an economically-developed Siberia and the Far East into the greater Asia-Pacific economic region (Ural’skii Rabochii, April 21).

 

Critics have labeled the proposal “Putin's Dal’stroi” – a reference to the Stalinist project under the direction of the NKVD for industrial extraction of gold from Kolyma in the late 1930s. They have expressed doubts about the project’s ability to attract long-term private capital (Forbes.ru, April 22). Others have called it Putin’s “oprichnina” – a reference to Ivan Grozny and his creation of, a territory outside of the existing administrative order (zemshchina), a state within a state where Ivan and his agents could do as they wanted and imposed a reign of terror (Moscow News, April 23).

 

The second major development affecting the Russian-Chinse “strategic partnership” has been the recent Sino-Russian naval exercises in the Yellow Sea. Sino-Russian naval exercises are not new and have been going on since 2005 under the auspices of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The recent exercise, “Maritime Joint Action-2012,” however, had several unique aspects (Nezavisimaia Gazeta, April 23). First, it took place on the 63rd anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy and recalled the early years of close collaboration between the navies of the PRC and USSR. Second, the major tasks associated with this exercise were the protection of sea lines of communications, air defense and anti-submarine warfare, which relate to immediate problems of sea control. Third, it took place at a time of increased tensions in the waters around China as a result of conflicts over what state has sovereignty over areas containing possible oil and gas reserves. In some of the disputed regions of the South China Sea China, Vietnam and the Philippines have competing claims. Chinese warships currently are patrolling the disputed Scarborough Shoal and Reed Bank in the South China Sea where there are reports of oil and gas reserves.

 

The military-run PLA Daily took the start of the Sino-Russian naval maneuvers as a good time to warn Washington not to interfere in disagreements between the Middle Kingdom and its neighbors (Nezavisimaia Gazeta, April 23). The Russian naval forces that joined Maritime Joint Action-2012 came from the Pacific Fleet and Northern Fleet, which included the ASW cruiser “Admiral Tributs” and two other support vessels that had just completed a deployment in the Gulf of Aden as part of the international anti-piracy operations there. This exercise, which was conducted in the Russian language, ran until April 27.

 

Looking east, Putin sees both economic and a political challenges. To play in the Asian century, Russia will have to develop the vast resources of Siberia and the Far East, and this will require a population dedicated to that task – something that Russia does not have. A long-term strategy for a Russian role in Asia also requires a strategic partner. Due to tensions with the United States over the Middle East and in the Far East, Moscow seems to be moving closer to Beijing. We are seeing a return to great power politics on the model of the 19th century, but with a very different axis in Eurasia. Russia seems to have finally accepted the notion of an Asian-Pacific century, where China will be a critical player and where Russia’s role will depend upon the successful development of Siberia and the Russian Far East.

Prime Minister of Japan's Schedule April 23-May 6

April 23, 2012 (MON)

AM
09:22 Office
09:29 Appointment order for Ms. Komiyama , Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, to Minister of State for Measures for Declining Birthrate; Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary, also attends
09:34 Mr. Fujimura leaves
09:38 Ms. Komiyama leaves
09:51 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister
09:57 Mr. Okada leaves
11:01 Mr. Naoki Igawa, President of Japan Junior Chamber, Inc.; Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM, also attends
11:33 Mr. Ryoichi Horie, Ambassador to Sudan; and Mr. Seiichi Otsuka, Ambassador to Lebanon
11:51 Both leave

PM
12:41 TBS, Akasaka
12:58 Recording of a news program
01:50 Office
02:14 Mr. Honda, Special Advisor to PM
02:18 Mr. Honda leaves
04:26 Mr. Furukawa, Minister of State for National Policy
05:07 Mr. Furukawa leaves
05:58 Farewell ceremony of Etsuya Washio, former chairman of Japanese Trade Union Confederation
06:37 Residence

April 24, 2012 (TUE)

AM
09:02 Office
09:12 Ministerial Meeting
09:25 Meeting ends
10:26 Imperial Palace; Spring Decoration Ceremony
11:23 Office

PM
01:51 Yoshinobu Onuki and Yuki Furuta, new and old Supreme Court Judges
02:26 The Upper House First Diet Member’s Building
02:29 Dentist in the Diet Member’s Building
02:54 Office
03:57 Mr. Taketoshi, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
04:09 Mr. Taketoshi leaves
05:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:23 Mr. Yasuchika Hasegawa, President of Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives)
05:43 Mr. Hasegawa leaves
06:54 Residence
06:55 Mr. Hirata, Chairperson of the Upper House; Mr. Otsuji, Vice-Chairperson of the Upper House; and Mr. Mizuoka, Special Advisor to PM
09:05 Mr. Hirata and Mr. Otsuji leave
09:07 Mr. Mizuoka leaves

April 25, 2012 (WED)

AM
09:33 Office
11:01 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office; and Mr. Mukuki, Director of the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center
11:09 Mr. Mukuki leaves
11:19 Mr. Kitamura leaves

PM
02:24 Mr. Muneo Suzuki, Former Lower House Member, Leader of New Party Daichi; Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM, also attends
03:06 The Japan Prize Presentation Ceremony at National Theater
04:27 Office
04:30 Mr. Nishimiya, Foreign Ministry councilor in charge of economics
05:01 Mr. Gurria, Secretary-General of OECD
05:20 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:45 Mr. Hajime Ishii, DPJ Upper House Member
06:23 Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; and Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
07:13 Residence

April 26, 2012 (THU)

AM
09:12 Office
09:14 Mr. Hiromasa Yonekura, Chairman of Keidanren
09:47 Government-RENGO Summit Meeting
10:30 Mr. Nakagawa, Minister for Civil Service Reform
10:48 Mr. Nakagawa leaves

PM
12:53 Parliament
01:02 The Lower House Plenary Session
01:16 Office
02:30 Mr. Matsubara, Minister for the Abduction Issue
02:47 Mr. Kanazawa, Administrative Vice Minister of Defense
02:58 Mr. Kanazawa leaves
04:01 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister
04:30 Courtesy Call from the President of the China-Japan Friendship Association Tang Jiaxuan; Mr. Saito and Mr. Nagahama also attend
05:05 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office; Mr. Kinomura, Director of Defense Intelligence Headquarters; and Mr. Ishizuka, Deputy Director General of Cabinet Office
05:14 Mr. Kinomura and Mr. Ishizuka leave
05:30 Mr. Kitamura leaves
05:45 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:43 Courtesy Call from the Economic Ministers of ASEAN Countries
07:00 ANA Intercontinental Hotel Tokyo. Dinner with members of the Upper House Budget Committee, Mr. Hajime Ishii, Yoshihiro Kawakami, Norio Takeuchi, Hisashi Tokunaga, and Emiko Uematsu; Mr. Mizuoka, Special Advisor to PM, also attends
09:16 Residence

April 27, 2012 (FRI)

AM
08:52 Office
09:02 Ministerial meeting
09:27 Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary; Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Ihara, Director-General of North American Affairs Bureau, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; Mr. Tanaka, Minister of Defense; and Mr. Kanazawa, Administrative Vice Minister of Defense; Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
09:42 Everyone leaves
09:46 Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs
10:02 Mr. Gemba leaves
10:54 Mr. Yamaguchi, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Bessho, Foreign Ministry councilor in charge of political affairs; and Mr. Ihara, Director-General of North American Affairs Bureau, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
11:24 Mr. Shintaro Ishihara, Governor of Tokyo; Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
11:58 Both leave

PM
01:15 Mr. Yasuo Ichikawa, the DPJ Upper House Secretary General
01:20 Mr. Ichikawa leaves
02:48 Mr. Honda, Special Advisor to PM
03:46 Constitution memorial hall
04:22 The Ceremony of Awarding the MIDORI Prize
05:02 MIDORI Prize Reception
05:35 Office
05:37 Mr. Koichi Kato, DPJ member; Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:48 Courtesy Call from Honorable Chairman of the Korea-Japan Cooperation Committee, Mr. Nam Duck-woo; Taro Aso, Former Prime Minister
06:17 Local Sovereignty Strategy Council
07:28 Meeting adjourned
07:45 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
08:10 Residence

April 28, 2012 (SAT)

AM

10:25 Yoyogi Park, Tokyo; May Day Central Rally; Purchase some vegetable in the Tohoku Support Booth
11:16 Made remarks for the gathering
11:55 Residence

PM
01:53 Mr. Sengoku, Deputy Chief of DPJ Policy Research Council
03:00 Mr. Yamaguchi, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM; Mr. Bessho, Foreign Ministry councilor in charge of political affairs; Mr. Okada, Vice-Minister for International Affairs, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry; Mr. Ihara, Director-General of North American Affairs Bureau, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; and Mr. Yagi, Director-General of Economic Affairs Bureau
03:47 Mr. Bessho, Mr. Okada, Mr. Ihara, and Mr. Yagi leaves
04:01 Mr. Yamaguchi and Mr. Saito leaves
04:06 Mr. Nagashima leaves

April 29, 2012 (SUN)

AM
Residence

PM
02:50 Haneda Airport
02:53 Press interview
03:20 Leave Haneda Airport for Washington, DC

April 29, 2012 (SUN, Local Time)

PM
Arrive at St. Andrews AFB
Meeting with the Americans who helped Japan for Tohoku disaster relief at the Japanese Ambassador Residence.
Stay in the Blair House

April 30, 2012 (MON, Local Time)

AM
Give flower tribute at the Arlington National Cemetery.
Japan-U.S. Summit at the White House.

PM
Lunch party hosted by President Obama at the White House; Joint Press Conference.
Courtesy call from Mr. Charles Bolden and Mr. Koichi Wakata of NASA at the Blair House.
Reception and dinner party hosted by Secretary Clinton at the National Geographic Association.
Press meeting at the Hotel Willard Continental
Stay in the Blair House

May 1, 2012 (TUE, local time)

AM
Breakfast with American business people.
Leave St. Andrews AFB for Tokyo.

May 2, 2012 (WED)

PM
Arrive at Haneda Airport
01:10 Imperial Palace; Report of return
01:27 Office
01:40 Mr. Furukawa, Minister of State for National Policy
02:01 Mr. Fujimura leaves
03:58 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister
04:23 Mr. Okada leaves
04:24 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office
04:30 Mr. Yonemura, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for Crisis Management; and Mr. Mukuki, Director of the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, joins
04:50 Everyone leaves
04:51 Mr. Bessho, Foreign Ministry councilor in charge of political affairs; and Mr. Sugiyama, Director-General of Asia and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
05:21 Both leave
05:53 Mr. Takasu, Under-Secretary General of the United Nations
06:04 Mr. Takasu leaves
06:13 Residence

May 3, 2012 (THU)

AM
Residence

PM
Residence

May 4, 2012 (FRI)

AM
Residence

PM
11:54 Capitol Hotel Tokyu,
Lunch with Mr. Koga, President of Rengo; and Mr. Masuda, former Minister of Internal Affairs
01:04 Residence

May 5, 2012 (SAT)

AM
Residence

PM
Residence

May 6, 2012 (SUN)

AM
Residence

PM
Residence

Congressional hearings this week

Click on links to view hearing or read testimony.

TSUNAMI GENERATED MARINE DEBRIS

5/17 – 10:30am, 253 Russell Senate Office Building. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard Subcommittee hearing on "Stemming the Tide: The U.S. Response to Tsunami Generated Marine Debris." Witnesses: Mr. David M. Kennedy, Assistant Administrator, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Rear Admiral Cari B. Thomas, Director of Response Policy, United States Coast Guard. 

CHEN GUANGCHENG

5/15 – 1:00pm, 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building. House Foreign Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights on “Chen Guangcheng: His Case, Cause, Family, and Those Who are Helping Him.” Witnesses: Pastor Bob Fu, Founder and President, ChinaAid Association; Mr. Wei Jingsheng, Founder and Chairman, Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition; Ms. Reggie Littlejohn, Founder and President, Women’s Rights Without Frontiers; Ms. Chai Ling, Founder, All Girls Allowed, Ms. Mei Shunping,Victim of forced abortion.

 

ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN SOUTH ASIA

5/16 – 2:00pm, 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building. House Foreign Affair Committee, Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia hearing on “Assessing U.S. Foreign Policy Priorities and Needs Amidst Economic Challenges in South Asia.” Witnesses: The Honorable Robert O. Blake, Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State; The Honorable Nisha Desai Biswal, Assistant Administrator for Asia, U.S. Agency for International Development; Mr. Daniel Feldman, Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, U.S. Department of State; Alexander Thier, Ph.D., Assistant to the Administrator and Director, Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs, U.S. Agency for International Development. 

INCREASING MARKETACCESS FOR U.S. FINANCIAL FIRMS IN CHINA

5/16 – 2:00pm, 2128 Rayburn House Office Building. House Financial Services Committee and International Monetary Policy and Trade Subcommittee hearing on "Increasing Market Access for U.S. Financial Firms in China: Update on Progress of the Strategic & Economic Dialogue." Witnesses: The Honorable Lael Brainard, Under Secretary, International Affairs, U.S. Department of the Treasury; Mr. Rob Nichols, President and Chief Executive Officer, Financial Services Forum; Mr. David Strongin, Managing Director, International Policy, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association; The Honorable Clay Lowery, Vice President, Rock Creek Global Advisors. 

TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT

5/17 – 2:00pm, 2360 of the Rayburn House Office Building. House Foreign Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade hearing on “The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement: Challenges and Potential.” Witnesses: Philip I. Levy, Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, Ms. Linda Menghetti, Vice President, Emergency Committee for American Trade; Ms. Celeste Drake, Trade & Globalization Policy Specialist, AFL-CIO; The Honorable Susan C. Schwab, Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland (Former United States Trade Representative).

IRAN SANCTIONS

5/17 – 10:00am, 2172 Rayburn House Office Building. House Foreign Affairs Full Committee hearing on “Iran Sanctions: Strategy, Implementation, and Enforcement.” Witnesses The Honorable Mark D. Wallace; President and Chief Executive Officer, United Against Nuclear Iran, (Former United States Representative to the United Nations for Management and Reform); Mr. Mark Dubowitz, Executive Director, Foundation for Defense of Democracies; Ray Takeyh, Ph.D., Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies, Council on Foreign Relations.

Prime Minister of Japan's Schedule April 16-22

April 16, 2012 (MON)

AM 
09:32 Office of PM
10:12 Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
10:56 Mr. Edano, Minister of Economic, Trade, and Industry
11:15 Mr. Edano leaves

PM
12:50 Parliament
01:00 The Upper House Plenary Session
01:12 Office of PM
03:00 Mr. Hiroshi Inoue, President of the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan
03:06 Mr. Inoue leaves
04:47 Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs
04:51 Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary, joins
05:14 Mr. Fujimura leaves
05:25 Mr. Gemba leaves
05:55Appointment of Mr. Nakagawa to Minister for Civil Service Reform
06:12 The Forum for Consultations between the National and Regional Governments
06:21 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:57 Dinner with Ambassador Roos of the United States; Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
08:37 Residence of PM

April 17, 2012 (TUE)

AM
08:16 Parliament
08:25 Ministerial Meeting on the Advancement of Disaster Waste Management
08:55 Ministerial meeting
09:04 Mr. Furukawa, Minister of State for National Policy
09:12 Office of PM
09:15 Mr. Goto, Senior Vice Minister of Cabinet Office
09:55 Mr. Azumi, Minister of Finance; Mr. Katsu, Administrative Vice-Minister of Finance; Mr. Nakao, Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs; and Mr. Kinoshita, Director-General of the International Bureau, Ministry of Finance
10:34 Everyone leaves

PM
12:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM; and Mr. Honda, Special Advisor to PM
12:50 Parliament
01:02 The Lower House Plenary Session
01:11 Office of PM; and Mr. Sasae, Administrative Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs
02:24 Mr. Sasae leaves
04:21 Mr. Koshiishi, DPJ Secretary General
04:55 Mr. Fujii, DPJ Head of Tax Research Commission
05:11 Mr. Akihiko Tanaka, and Ms. Sadako Ogata, new and old President of JICA.
05:30 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:25 Reception to Express Respect to Ms. Sadako Ogata on her Contributions to Japan and the International Community
06:52 The Opening Ceremony of the WTTC Global Summit
07:31 Dinner with editorial directors from major newspaper and news agencies; Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM, also attends
09:11 Residence of PM

April 18, 2012 (WED)

AM
07:16 Mr. Nagahama, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; and Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
08:41 Both leaves
08:50 Parliament
08:59 The Lower House Budget Committee

PM
12:04 Office of PM
12:49 Parliament
01:00 The Upper House Budget Committee
04:14 Office of PM
05:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:53 Courtesy call from Secretary of CPC Ningxia Hui Autonomous Regional Committee and other Chinese local government leaders; Ambassador Cheng Yonghua of PRC also attends
06:08 Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Azumi, Minsiter of Finance; and Mr. Tanaka, Minister of Defense
06:12 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister, joins
06:48 Everyone leaves
07:12 Dinner with DPJ Lower House members
09:30 Residence of PM

April 19, 2012 (THU)

AM
09:31Office of PM
09:33 Mr. Matsubara, Minister for the Abduction Issue
09:47 Courtesy Call from the Co-Chairman of the EU-Japan Business Round Table, Mr. Hiromasa Yonekura; Mr. Nagahama, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
10:30 Mr. Shimoji, Secretary-General of the People’s New Party
11:01 Interview with the Washington Post
11:34 Interview ends

PM
12:03 Three DPJ/Government Executive Meeting
01:02 The meeting ends
01:41Akasaka Gyoen, attend the spring garden party
02:56 Office of PM
03:34 Mr. Honda, Special Advisor to PM
03:57 Mr. Okada, Vice-Minister for International Affairs, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
04:30 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:00 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office; Mr. Nishi, Director-General of the Bureau of Defense Policy, Ministry of Defense; and Mr. Kinomura, Director of Defense Intelligence Headquarters
05:07 Mr. Nishi and Mr. Kinomura leave
05:28 Mr. Kitamura leaves
05:50 Courtesy Call from the Minister of Emergencies of Ukraine Viktor Baloga
06:08 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister
06:23 Mr. Okada leaves
06:24 Mr. Kazuhiko Shimokobe, Chairman of the Nuclear Damage Liability Facilitation Fund; Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister; Mr. Edano, Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry; Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary
07:03 Dinner with Mr. Nagahama, Deputy Cabinet Secretary at a Japanese restaurant “Tsuyama” in Akasaka
09:58 Residence

April 20, 2012 (FRI)

AM
09:10 Office
09:21 Ministerial meeting
09:33 Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs
09:34 Mr. Gemba leaves

PM
01:58 Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM; Mr. Ihara, Director-General of North American Affairs Bureau, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; and Mr. Nishi, Director-General of the Bureau of Defense Policy, Ministry of Defense
02:15 Mr. Nishi leaves
02:18 Mr. Ihara leaves
02:25 Mr. Nagashima leaves
05:26 Mr. Furukawa, Minister of State for National Policy; and Mr. Goto, Senior Vice Minister of Cabinet Office; and Mr. Matsumoto, Administrative Vice Minister of Cabinet Office
05:51 Mr. Goto leaves
05:58 Mr. Furukawa and Mr. Matsumoto leave
05:59 Mr. Maehara, chairperson of DPJ Policy Research Council
06:12 Mr. Maehara leaves
06:13 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:38 Akasaka Guest Palace
07:00 Dinner party of Japan-Mekong summit participants
08:47 Residence

April 21, 2012 (SAT)

AM
07:55 Akasaka Guest House
08:40 The Summit Meeting between Japan and the Mekong Region Countries
08:52 Photo shooting
08:56 Summit meeting
10:30 Meeting ends
10:47 Joint press announcement
11:33 Residence

PM
01:54 Guest House
03:02 Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia; Mr. Maeda, Minster of Land, Infrastructure, and Transportation, also attends
03:46 Signing ceremony of grant aid, and joint press announcement
04:20 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of Vietnam, Mr. Maeda, Minster of Land, Infrastructure, and Transportation, also attends
05:04 Meeting ends
05:30 President Thein Sein of Myanmar; Mr. Edano, Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry; and Mr. Maeda, Minster of Land, Infrastructure, and Transportation, also attend
06:33 Meeting ends
06:36 Signing ceremony of grant aid, and joint press announcement
07:10 Dinner party hosted by Prime Minister
08:15 Party ends
08:26 Residence

April 22, 2012 (SUN)

AM
Residence

PM
04:35 Haircut in ”Hair Salon Ono”, Hotel New Otani
06:27 The 43rd Annual Meeting of the Trilateral Commission in Tokyo, Hotel Okura, Toranomon, Tokyo
06:49 DPJ Social Gathering in Hotel New Otani
07:00 Dinner with Three DPJ/Government Executive Meeting members
09:06 Residence

Monday May 14th

DEFINING AMERICAN INTERESTS IN ASIA. 5/14, 9:00-10:00am , Washington, DC. Sponsor: CSIS. Speakers: Sen. John McCain, R-Z; and John Hamre, president and CEO of CSIS.

SHADOW NATO SUMMIT III: COMMITMENTS, CAPABILITIES AND CONNECTIVITY: IMPLEMENTING NATO'S NEW STRATEGIC CONCEPT. 5/14-15, 9:00am-3:00pm, lunch, Washington, DC. Sponsors: British American Security Information Council (BASIC), Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, NATO Watch, Strategy International and the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs. Speakers: Dr. Douglas Shaw, Associate Dean, The Elliott School of International Affairs; Mr. Paul Ingram, Executive Director, BASIC; Dr. Kennette Benedict, Executive Director, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists; Dr. Ian Davis, Director, NATO Watch; Amb. James Dobbins, former U.S. envoy to Afghanistan; Ms. Rangina Hamidi, human rights activist and president of Kandahar Treasure, the first women-run business in Kandahar; Ms. Candace Rondeaux, Senior Analyst - Afghanistan, International Crisis Group; Ms. Ann Jones, writer (Kabul in Winter 2006 and War Is Not Over When It’s Over, 2010); Lt.-Gen. Charles Bouchard (ret.)*, former Commander of the NATO military operation ‘Unified Protector’ in Libya; Amb. Nancy E. Soderberg, President, Connect U.S. Fund; former Senior Deputy National, Security Adviser and Ambassador to the U.N. during the Balkans and Rwandan genocides; Ms. Phyllis Bennis, Director, New Internationalism Project at the Institute for Policy Studies; Mr. Tom Malinowski, Washington Director, Human Rights Watch; Mr. Philip Worré, Executive Director, ISIS Europe; Dr. Jean-Loup Samaan, NATO Defense College; Mr. Geneve Mantri, Director, Terrorism and Counterterrorism, Amnesty International USA; Mr. Sean Lawson, Assistant Professor, Communication, University of Utah; Ms. Julianne Smith, Principal Director (Europe and NATO), Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Policy), and Special Assistant to the Secretary for the NATO Summit; Mr. John Feffer, co-director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies; Dr. Marios Efthymiopoulos, President, Strategy International; Ms. Anita Friedt, Director, Office of Policy and Regional Affairs, U.S. State Department; Mr. Walter Slocombe, former U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy; Amb. Steven Pifer, Director of Arms Control Initiative, Brookings Institution; Mr. Paul Ingram, Executive Director, BASIC; Mr. Harry Heintzelman, IV, Deputy Director, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance, State Dept; Amb. Francois Rivasseau, member of UN Secretary-General’s disarmament advisory board; Mr. Ted Seay, arms control, disarmament, and non-proliferation specialist; former arms control adviser to U.S. Ambassador to NATO; Mr. Daryl Kimball, Executive Director, Arms Control Association; Amb. Kurt Volker, Managing Director and Senior Fellow of the Center for Transatlantic Relations (SAIS); Dr. Celeste Wallander, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia/Ukraine/Eurasia, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Policy); Dr. Hall Gardner, Professor and Chair, Department of International and Comparative Politics, The American University of Paris; Mr. Sarwar A. Kashmeri, Senior Fellow, International Security Program, Atlantic Council; Ms. Antonella Cerasino, Head of NATO Countries, Public Diplomacy Division; Mr. Steven Croley, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Counsel to the President in the Office of White House Counsel; Mr. David Shaman, former World Bank Official; Dr. Ian Davis, Director, NATO Watch.

AFTER PUTIN 4.0 INAUGURATION: AN AGENDA FOR U.S.-RUSSIAN RELATIONS - FOREIGN POLICY, DEMOCRACY, AND THE RULE OF LAW. 5/14, Noon-1:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: Heritage. Speakers: Karen Kawisha, professor of political science at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio; Nadia Diuk, vice president of programs, Europe & Eurasia, Africa, Latin America & the Caribbean, National Endowment for Democracy; and Konstantine von Eggert, commentator and host of Kommersant FM Radio. 

WOMEN OF WASHINGTON. 5/14, 1:30-3:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: The Atlantic. Speakers : Caryl Stern, president and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund); Linda Douglass, The Atlantic. Location:  

NEW NUCLEAR LICENSING: THE WAY FORWARD. 5/14, 3:00pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: U.S. Nuclear Infrastructure Council. Speakers: Nuclear Regulatory Commission Director of New Reactor Licensing David Matthews; Leslie Kass, vice president of regulatory affairs at Westinghouse Electric Company; Margaret Harding, president of 4-Factor Consulting LLC; and Tom Retson, COO at Blue Castle Holdings. 

FREEDOM'S FORGE: HOW AMERICAN BUSINESS PRODUCED VICTORY IN WORLD WAR II. 5/14, 5:30-6:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: AEI. Speakers: Arthur Herman, author; Henry Olsen, director of AEI's National Research Initiative. 

APEC 2012 IN VLADIVOSTOK. 5/14, 2:00-3:30pm, Washington, DC. Sponsor: CSIS Simon Chair in Political Economy and the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program. Speakers: Ambassador Gennady Ovechko, Senior Official of Russia for APEC; Matthew P. Goodman, William E. Simon Chair for Political Economy, CSIS, Former White House Coordinator for APEC. Moderator: Dr. Andrew C. Kuchins, Director and Senior Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Program, CSIS.

Russia Mulls Far Eastern Economic Revival

Russia’s top officials have insisted the country’s plans to develop its Far Eastern regions remain unaffected by the presidential transition. Ahead of the Kremlin changeover, the authorities reiterated pledges to develop the Russian Far East, apparently aiming to turn these remote regions into a link between Europe and the booming Asia-Pacific. On April 11, Prime Minister and President-elect Vladimir Putin stated that in the next 10-15 years Russia’s Far East and Eastern Siberia must achieve higher growth rates than the country’s GDP growth. He described the development of these regions as “the most important geopolitical task” for Russia (RIA Novosti, April 11).

Apparently bearing geopolitical considerations in mind, the Kremlin advocated stronger transportation ties between European Russia and the country’s eastern regions. On April 26, Putin suggested prioritizing the development of railways in Siberia and the Far East, notably including the Trans-Siberian Railway as well as the Baikal-Amur Railway (BAM) and related port infrastructure. Putin estimated that BAM freight turnover could triple by 2020 from its current level of 12 million tons/year (Interfax, ITAR-Tass, RIA Novosti, April 28).

Incidentally, during the 1970s, the BAM was intended to back up the Trans-Siberian railroad in the event of a military confrontation with China. Now, Russian officials apparently view transportation infrastructure as a means to develop trade and economic ties with eastern neighbors, including China.

On April 28, first Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Russia and China planned to create a joint investment fund totaling some $4 billion. The new entity would be funding joint projects, including the development of Russia’s Far East and Siberia, according to Shuvalov (RIA Novosti, April 28).

Shuvalov also said that the planned state corporation tasked to develop Russia’s Far East and Siberia could be created as a subsidiary of the state-run Vnesheconombank (VEB). The corporation would prioritize energy and transportation infrastructure projects, according to Shuvalov. He also said programs to develop Far Eastern regions would require up to 2 trillion rubles ($68 billion) by 2020 (RIA Novosti, April 28).

In November 2011, the VEB created a subsidiary – Far East and Baikal Region Development Fund. The new entity pledged to disburse some 70 billion rubles ($2.4 billion) in banking loans by 2015 (RIA Novosti, April 28).

In January 2012, the Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu urged Putin to create a state corporation to develop Russia’s Far East and Siberia. However, shortly afterwards Shoigu was removed from a position that allowed him to take part in the implementation of his idea. He retired from his ministerial post and was appointed governor of the Moscow region.

Incidentally, another top official in charge of the development of Russia’s Far East and Siberia, Regional Development Minister Viktor Basargin, was removed from his post. On April 28, Basargin retired as minister and was appointed acting governor of Perm region.

The Kremlin has been urging faster growth of Russia’s Far Eastern regions for quite some time. In 2007, Russia’s federal government pledged to allocate up to 600 billion rubles ($20.4 billion) to fund development projects in Eastern Siberia and the Far East by 2013, and 9 trillion rubles ($307 billion) by 2025. Officials also indicated plans to raise the gross regional product by 12 times in 2020 by building four refineries and petrochemical plants, four gas-chemical plants, as well as a 10-million-ton/year steel plant in Yakutiya, aluminum plants and a nuclear power plant.

Ahead of the presidential transition, officials kept promising increased investment in regional development projects. On April 15, the presidential envoy to the Far Eastern regions Viktor Ishayev suggested adopting the regional development blueprint until 2050. He estimated that programs to develop Far Eastern regions would require up to 3.3 trillion rubles ($112 billion) in the next decade (RIA Novosti, April 15).

Russian officials continued to prioritize energy-related plans. Ishayev said the development of Far Eastern oil and gas would require up to 1.156 trillion rubles ($39 billion) with a focus on Kovykta and Chayandinskoe gas deposits. The investment of 675 billion rubles ($23 billion) in gas pipelines would allow increased exports to China and Korea. He also suggested building a second rail line of the BAM at an estimated cost of 500 billion rubles ($17 billion) so as to increase the line capacity up to 100 million tons/year by 2050.

Ishayev conceded that Chinese investments amounted to a mere one percent of total foreign investments in Russia’s Far Eastern regions, and urged to increase investment cooperation with China (RIA Novosti, April 15).

But Russian officials also voiced a preference for balanced economic ties with major East Asian economies. On April 21, during a visit to Japan, Ishayev urged Japanese businesses to invest in major projects in Russia’s Far East and Siberia, including development of oil, gas and coal deposits, as well as transportation infrastructure (RIA Novosti, April 21).

Russian officials have pledged to pursue high-profile projects of political significance, including those designed to prepare for the APEC meeting in Vladivostok. In 2007, the Kremlin pledged to spend nearly $4 billion in government funding to build a resort area on Russky Island, off the Pacific port of Vladivostok, to host the APEC 2012 summit. On April 15, Ishayev hailed the large-scale projects in Vladivostok a success. On April 28, construction workers installed a final section of the flagship project, the bridge linking Russky Island and the mainland (RIA Novosti, April 15, 28).

Therefore, Russian government officials continue to insist their ambitious goals to develop Far Eastern regions remain firmly on track, although it remains to be seen whether these plans will prove economically viable.


By: Sergei Blagov
Reprinted with permission from the Eurasia Daily Monitor, Jamestown Foundation, Volume: 9 Issue: 83, May 2, 2012

Prime Minister of Japan's Schedule April 9-15

April 9, 2012 (MON)

AM
09:34 Office of PM
10:00 Xie Suren, Minister of Finance, PRC. Mr. Nakao, Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, also attends
10:30 Mr. Erikawa, former Secretary-General of National Personnel Authority
10:58 Mr. Furukawa, Minister of State for National Policy
11:31 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office; and Mr. Nishi, Director-General of the Bureau of Defense Policy, Ministry of Defense; and Mr. Kinomura, Director of Defense Intelligence Headquarters.
11:38 Mr. Nishi and Mr. Kinomura leave
11:42 Mr. Kitamura leaves

PM
02:00 Mr. Yonemura, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for Crisis Management; and Mr. Sakurai, Assistant Chief Cabinet Secreatry.
02:23 Mr. Ishida, Senior Vice Minister of Cabinet Office
03:01 Mr. Gemba, Minister of Foreign Affairs
03:38 Mr. Gemba leaves
04:42 Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; and Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
05:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Adviser to PM
05:31 Tsetska Tsacheva, President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria
05:52 The Council on National Strategy and Policy
07:03 The meeting adjourned
08:00 Meeting among Four Ministers on the Issue of Nuclear Power Stations; Mr. Sengoku, Deputy Chief of DPJ Policy Research Council
08:26 The meeting adjourned
08:45 Residence of PM

April 10, 2012 (TUE)

AM
08:52 Office of PM
09:01 Ministerial meeting
09:09 The meeting adjourned
10:36 Receives Proposals from Dr. Takashi Onishi , President of the Science Council of Japan
10:58 Mr. Hajime Ishii, DPJ Upper House Member
11:19 Mr. Ishii leaves

PM
01:57 The Frontier Subcommittee of the Council on National Strategy and Policy – Frontier of Prosperity Panel
02:18 Office
03:21 Press group interview
03:54 Mr. Tanaka, Minister of Defense; Mr. Kanazawa, Administrative Vice Minister of Defense; Mr. Iwasaki, head of the Joint Chief
04:27 Mr. Toshimi Kitazawa and Mr. Hajime Hirota, DPJ Upper House members; Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
05:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:46 Presentation Ceremony of the "Food and Community Solidarity" Selection; Mr. Kano, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery also attends
06:31 Japan-UK Summit Meeting with Mr. Cameron, Prime Minister of UK; Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; and Mr. Nagahama, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary also attend
07:09 Residence
07:10 Dinner party hosted by Prime Minister Noda
08:23 See off Prime Minister Cameron

April 11, 2012 (WED)

AM
09:33 Office
10:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
11:10 Mr. Tezuka leaves

PM
02:50 Parliament
03:00 Committee on Fundamental National Policies Joint Meeting of Both Houses at the Diet (Party Leaders’ Debate)
03:55 Office
04:02 Courtesy Call from the Panelists of the US-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON) XXV; Mr. Minoru Makihara, and Mr. Porte Chairpersons of the Conference; U.S. Ambassador Roos to Japan also attends
04:32 Three DPJ/Government Executive Meeting
05:32 Courtesy Call from the Recipients of the Healthy Society Award
05:41 Issue appointment to Mr. Hara, New Secretary-General of National Personnel Authority
05:46 Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office; and Mr. Nishi, Director-General of the Bureau of Defense Policy, Ministry of Defense; amd Mr. Kinomura, Director of Defense Intelligence Headquarters.
05:59 Mr. Nishi and Mr. Kinomura leave; Mr. Yonemura, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for Crisis Management, joins
06:07 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:34 Meeting with His Majesty Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, King of Bahrain
07:04 Signing Ceremony for security exchange
07:09 Dinner Party hosted by Prime Minister
08:14 See off King Hamad
08:19 Residence

April 12, 2012 (THU)

AM
06:47 Office

PM
12:49 Parliament
01:02 The Lower House Plenary Session
01:16 Office
02:00 Ministerial Council on Monthly Economic Report and Other Relative Issues
02:19 Mr. Kawabata, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications
02:29 Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary, joins
02:53 Mr. Nishimura, Senior Vice Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare
03:34 Mr. Yonemura, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for Crisis Management; and Mr. Kitamura, Head of Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office
03:50 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister; Mr. Sonoda, Mr. Sonoda, Parliamentary Secretary of Cabinet Office; and Mr. Terada, Special Advisor to PM
04:13 Mr. Sonoda and Mr. Terada leave
04:23 Mr. Okada leaves
04:45 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
05:25 Meeting among Four Ministers on the Issue of Nuclear Power Stations; Mr. Sengoku, Deputy Chief of DPJ Policy Research Council
06:54 Residence

April 13, 2012 (FRI)

AM
06:47 Office
08:25 Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary
08:27 Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM, joins
08:28 Mr. Fujimura and Mr. Nagashima leave
08:35 Mr. Tanaka, Minister of Defense
08:45 National Security Council meeting
09:13 Ministerial meeting
10:02 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister; and Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
10:43 Mr. Okada and Mr. Nagashima leave
11:05 National Security Council meeting
11:28 Meeting adjourned

PM
12:51 Parliament
01:02 The Lower House Plenary session
01:11 Office
03:10 Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM
03:19 Mr. Okada, Deputy Prime Minister; and Mr. Terada, Special Advisor to PM, join
03:24 Mr. Tanaka, Minister of Defense; Mr. Kanazawa, Administrative Vice Minister of Defense; Mr. Iwasaki, head of the Joint Chief, join
03:28 Mr. Fujimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary, joins
04:03 Everyone leaves
04:06 Mr. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Founder of Art of Living, a volunteer organization
05:00 The First Council on the Economic Situation including the Issue of Overcoming Deflation
05:15 Mr. Koshiishi, DPJ Secretary General
06:00 Mr. Tezuka, Special Advisor to PM
06:14 Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
06:30 Meeting among Four Ministers on the Issue of Nuclear Power Stations; Mr. Sengoku, Deputy Chief of DPJ Policy Research Council
07:39 Residence

April 14, 2012 (SAT)

AM
10:59 Office
11:38 Meeting with Dr. Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority; Mr. Saito, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, and Mr. Nagashima, Special Advisor to PM, attend

PM
12:17 Luncheon hosted by Prime Minister
01:24 See off Dr. Abbas
01:30 Attend the wedding ceremony of Mr. Hiroyuki Konishi, DPJ Upper House member, and a French restaurant Tour D’Argent in Hotel New Otani, Kioicho, Tokyo
01:52 Residence

April 15, 2012 (SUN)

AM
09:38 Hotel Nikko Tokyo, Daiba, Tokyo
09:44 Deliver an address at the East Asia Low Carbon Growth Partnership Dialogue
10:08 Residence

PM
Whole afternoon at residence