Demands by U.S. Hamper Trade Talks, Japan Claims

Grandstanding by U.S. officials could hinder trade negotiations with Japan just as they enter the critical phase, a senior Foreign Ministry official said today.

“I think we should not hear too much (publicly) about these kind of talks when both sides are engaged seriously (on) the points of disagreement,” chief Foreign Ministry spokesman Taizo Watanabe said at a news conference.

New last-minute demands from the Americans are “a source of embarrassment,” Watanabe said.

The United States and Japan are struggling to agree on broad economic reforms to cut the nearly $50-billion annual U.S. trade deficit with Japan.

Watanabe declined to identify the demands but added that “some comments made by the American government were an additional source of embarrassment.”

Watanabe implied that the U.S. tactics might disrupt attempts to gain consensus among various Japanese factions. Heated discussions are under way between ministries to resolve their differing positions, he said.

The talks, dubbed the Structural Impediments Initiative, are intended to eliminate obstacles to balanced trade between the two nations.

A final report is to be hammered out during a meeting of the two nations in Tokyo June 25 and 26. Failure to do so would jeopardize the report’s scheduled release in time for the Houston summit of leaders of advanced nations in mid-July.

In recent weeks, U.S. officials have grumbled that Japan was backsliding on interim agreements reached in April on such things as toughening enforcement of Japanese anti-trust law.

Japanese officials reportedly are annoyed that the United States has renewed demands that Japan tie its public works spending to a percentage of its gross national product.

Finance Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto has repeatedly said Japan will refuse to do so.

Compounding the task of completing the final report, Watanabe said, are disagreements over the earlier one.