Bush Asks Changes in FSX Deal With Japan : U.S. Seeks Major Share in Production of Fighter and Rights to Technological Gains From Project

The Bush Administration has notified Japan officially that it wants significant changes in the controversial plan for the joint development of the advanced FSX fighter plane before it sends the accord to Congress for its approval, White House officials said Tuesday.

The President’s position, conveyed privately Monday to Japanese Ambassador Nobuo Matsunaga by senior Bush Administration officials, seeks two changes in the current agreement, which was negotiated by the outgoing Reagan Administration.

Tokyo Response Uncertain

There was no indication Tuesday how the Japanese would respond. Tokyo has said repeatedly that it considers the current terms for the project--which would be the first major new weapons system developed cooperatively by the two countries--as final.

Administration officials said they do not expect to receive an answer from Tokyo for a few days. The White House has told the Japanese that it wants the changes nailed down before it takes the plan to Capitol Hill.

Bush, asked by reporters late Tuesday if he had received a response from Tokyo, said there had been “no representation to the Oval Office” yet.

“I don’t know when there will be an official announcement,” Bush said. “We’ve pretty much finished our deliberations here inside the Administration. . . . I’ve made my decision to go forward with certain clarifications on the (1988 agreement).”

Bush’s demands for changes involved two major aspects of the accord, officials said.

First, Washington told Tokyo that it wants Japan to agree to allocate a major part of the eventual production work on the new fighter to American firms and workers. U.S. officials hope that the share will be at least 40%, although Bush’s proposed changes do not cite a specific figure.

The current understanding gives the United States a role in developing the airplane, which is to include technology developed for the F-16 fighter plane, but it makes no promises about the production phase.

Second, officials said, the Administration asked that the agreement spell out the existing technology that will be used in the project so that the United States can better claim access to new spinoff advances developed by the joint U.S.-Japanese effort.

The Administration’s message to Tokyo was delivered to Matsunaga jointly by four top Bush lieutenants--Secretary of State James A. Baker III, Defense Secretary Dick Cheney, Commerce Secretary Robert A. Mosbacher and National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft.

Computer Software Issue

U.S. officials said the two sides did not discuss another frequently mentioned issue, the amount of sensitive source codes--blueprints of computer software used to control the aircraft--that the United States will provide to Japan as part of the deal.

The officials said that the source-codes issue proved to be moot because Japan already has that technology as part of a previous contract for co-production of the less-advanced F-15, a much earlier version of the new plane that the two nations are to develop.

They said that Washington will seek a pledge from Japan that the source codes will be used only for production of military aircraft and not as the nub of a new civilian aircraft industry. But the language is expected to be kept vague.

Details of the Administration’s request began to emerge Tuesday. White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater said that senior Bush policy-makers have briefed congressional leaders privately about the Administration’s intentions.

Congress to Have 30 Days

Initial reaction on Capitol Hill Tuesday was skeptical, pending the response from Japan. Congress has 30 days in which to overturn the U.S.-Japanese accord, but officials said that the time clock would not start ticking until the lawmakers return from their Easter recess.

Officials said that if Japan accepts the U.S. demands, the new terms may be included in side letters rather than as part of the official accord to avoid having to redraft the entire agreement. Japanese officials have hinted that they would be embarrassed by direct revamping of the pact.

Tokyo had asked the Administration to make up its mind on the accord by March 31 so it could decide how to handle spending for the project in the Japanese budget for fiscal 1990. The Japanese fiscal year begins April 1.

Some analysts have urged the Administration to abandon the deal, warning that it could propel Japan into becoming a major producer of sophisticated military aircraft and a competitor of U.S. aircraft makers.

But the Administration has countered that if Washington does not offer to take part in the venture, Japan will build the aircraft on its own, leaving U.S. producers with no share in the project’s benefits.