Press Conference 26 December 2003
- Statement by Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations on the assassination attempt by suicide bombing against President Pervez Musharraf of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
- Statement by Press Secretary on the announcement by President Musharraf to relinquish his position of Chief of the Army Staff
- Statement by Press Secretary on the adoption of the draft resolution entitled "The Illicit Trade in Arms and Light Weapons in All Aspects" submitted by Japan at the United Nations General Assembly
- Dispatch of election monitors from Japan for presidential election in Georgia
- Upcoming visit to Japan by Mr. James A. Baker, Special Presidential Envoy on the issue of Iraqi debt, of the United States of America
- Statement by Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations on the assassination attempt by suicide bombing against President Pervez Musharraf of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Press Secretary Hatsuhisa Takashima: Good afternoon. Today I have five announcements I would like to make.
The first two announcements are statements with regard to the Pakistani situation.
First, on the assassination attempt against President Pervez Musharraf of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
The Government of Japan expresses its strong indignation towards the assassination attempt by suicide bombing against General Musharraf, President of Pakistan, in Rawalpindi on 25 December.
The Government of Japan extends its condolences to the bereaved families and heartfelt sympathy for those who were killed and injured in this incident of terrorism.
The Government of Japan firmly condemns any acts of terrorism and is determined to continue working with the international community for the elimination of terrorism.
Related Information (Statement by the Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the assassination attempt by suicide bombings against President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan)
- Statement by Press Secretary on the announcement by President Musharraf to relinquish his position of Chief of the Army Staff
Mr. Takashima: Second, on 24 December, General Musharraf announced his intention to relinquish the position of Chief of the Army Staff by the end of next year. The Government of Japan welcomes this announcement as being a step towards further progress of democratization in Pakistan.
- Statement by Press Secretary on the adoption of the draft resolution entitled "The Illicit Trade in Arms and Light Weapons in All Aspects" submitted by Japan at the United Nations General Assembly
Mr. Takashima: The third announcement is on the adoption of the draft resolution entitled "The Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Aspects" at the United Nations General Assembly.
The Government of Japan welcomes the adoption by consensus of the draft resolution entitled "The Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Aspects" jointly submitted by Japan, the Republic of South Africa and Colombia on 23 December (New York time) at the UN General Assembly.
Strongly recognizing that unified efforts by the international community are needed to address small arms issues, Japan intends to continue its proactive efforts for the prevention of illicit trade in small arms.
- Dispatch of election monitors from Japan for presidential election in Georgia
Mr. Takashima: The fourth announcement is about the dispatch of election monitors to the presidential election in Georgia.
The Government of Japan decided to dispatch three election monitors to the presidential election in Georgia to be held on 4 January. This election is considered to be an important process towards the democratization and economic stabilization of Georgia. The Japanese monitors will join the team of election monitors organized by the Organization of Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
- Upcoming visit to Japan by Mr. James A. Baker, Special Presidential Envoy on the issue of Iraqi debt, of the United States of America
Mr. Takashima: The fifth announcement is on the visit to Japan by Mr. James Baker, special envoy on the Iraqi debt issue.
Mr. Baker, special envoy of President George W. Bush of the United States of America on the issue of Iraqi debt, will be visiting Japan from 28 to 29 December. He will be meeting with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on 29 December and it is expected that the Iraqi debt issue will be discussed.
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