Machimura to make 8-day trip to N.Y., Paris from Thurs

Japan Policy & Politics, May 2, 2005

TOKYO, April 27 Kyodo

Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura will make an eight-day trip to New York and Paris from Thursday to push Tokyo's bid for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council and express its readiness to join various security and economic talks in both cities, Japanese officials said Wednesday.

In New York on the first leg of his trip, Machimura is expected to try to consolidate Japan's push for a permanent seat on the council through talks with representatives from a number of U.N. members.

Machimura plans to hold a meeting Friday with chiefs of a number of U.N. missions and promote Japan's eagerness and readiness to become a permanent member of the Security Council.

The Japanese government envisages more than 100 countries joining the meeting, a top official of the ministry said.

Machimura also plans to meet with Gabonese Foreign Minister Jean Ping, who serves as chairman of the U.N. General Assembly, on Friday to discuss the latest situation on work to reform the world body, the officials said.

He will also meet with Secretary General Kofi Annan on Monday, they said.

Machimura also plans to attend a conference on review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty also planned for Monday, the officials said.

He is also expected to urge all countries possessing nuclear weapons to abandon them and participants in the NPT meeting to declare the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty should take effect at an early date, the officials said.

Machimura will arrive in Paris on Tuesday to join two-day ministerial meetings of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development which will start the same day.

He also plans to join ministerial talks of the World Trade Organization on May 4 before he returns to Japan on May 5, the officials said.