Japan to continue contributing toward Mideast peace: Tanaka

Japan Policy & Politics, June 11, 2001

TOKYO, June 5 Kyodo

Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka told Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres in a telephone conversation Tuesday that Japan will continue to make contributions toward attaining peace in the Middle East, a Japanese ministry official said.

In response to a demand by Peres that the world's major countries such as Japan urge Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to implement his pledge for a cease-fire, Tanaka said, ''Japan will take appropriate actions, but Israel should also practice self-restraint,'' the official said.

In the 15-minute conversation, Tanaka voiced hope that Israelis and Palestinians will fully implement a cease-fire and make efforts to resume negotiations aimed at concluding a peace agreement at an early date, according to the official.

Peres, who requested the telephone call, explained that there are two positive steps in the Middle East peace process -- cease-fires called by Israelis and Palestinians following a deadly suicide bombing in Tel Aviv on Friday, as well as the Mitchell report issued last month.

Peres evaluated the report, issued by a U.S. commission headed by former Sen. George Mitchell, as balanced overall and said it should be approved without changes, even though he said not all of the contents are mutually acceptable, according to the official.

The report recommends specific steps to be taken by the two sides to end the latest wave of violence that broke out in September last year, a cooling-off period, and regaining of mutual trust and a resumption of negotiations.