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Japan bets on Middle East
peace
By J Sean Curtin
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas left
Tokyo on Tuesday after a high-profile three-day
visit during which Japanese Prime Minister
Junichiro Koizumi pledged US$100 million in new
aid to the Palestinians. This is a significant
donation given that Japan is already one of the
biggest financial backers of the Palestinian
Authority (PA) and indicates Tokyo's determination
to play a significant role in the Middle East
peace process. Koizumi also announced an offer to
host a three-way summit involving the Palestinian
president and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon,
as well as his intention to visit the Palestinian
Territories in the near future.
At a joint
press conference with Abbas, Koizumi declared,
"Japan will give all the support it can give."
Abbas said the Palestinians "deeply appreciate
Japan's financial support and great contribution".
Japanese news agency Kyodo quoted Abbas as saying,
"I hold expectations that Japan will continue its
support for Palestine, not only financially, but
also politically by playing a role that would
contribute to the Middle East peace process."
A senior Japanese diplomat told Asia Times
Online, "These substantial new funds clearly
demonstrate Japan's firm commitment to the Middle
East peace process. In accordance with
international agreements, we want to help
establish an independent Palestinian state
co-existing in peace with a secure Israel." He
added, "Peaceful coexistence between the two
peoples lies at the core of Japanese policy and
resources are allocated on this principle."
The new aid is for improving the lives of
ordinary Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and
reviving the moribund Palestinian economy. Japan
hopes the money will be spent rebuilding basic
infrastructure such as housing, roads and sewage.
Tokyo also announced its intention to resume
direct assistance to the PA for the first time
since 2000.
This new Palestinian aid
package has three main objectives: (i) To
strengthen Tokyo's chances of playing a key role
in any Middle East peace agreement; (ii) To add
momentum to its bid for a permanent United Nations
Security Council seat, which Abbas publicly
supports; and (iii) To restore Tokyo's once
glittering Middle East reputation, which took a
pounding after Koizumi dispatched troops on a
humanitarian mission to Iraq.
A
significant portion of Japan's oil comes from the
Middle East, and Tokyo is determined to maintain
good relations with all countries in the region,
despite its close ties to the US and support for
President George W Bush's Iraq policy. This dual
strategy has been surprisingly successful,
allowing Tokyo to strike a major oil deal with
Iran despite it being part of the US's "axis of
evil" and a bitter opponent of the Iraq invasion.
The $100 million in aid comes on top of
the $60 million in special assistance Japan gave
the Palestinians last November, after the death of
former Palestinian president Yasser Arafat. That
donation brought Tokyo's total assistance for
fiscal 2004 to $90 million. Since the Oslo accords
of 1993 it has pledged about $760 million in
development assistance to the PA and is also a
major aid donor to neighboring countries such as
Jordan. Since 1974 Tokyo has provided Amman with
more than $1.8 billion in soft loans, as well as
an integrated economic aid package worth over $400
million in recent years.
Israel wary of
international initiatives
Abbas' visit
marks his first trip to Tokyo since assuming the
Palestinian presidency. His election as leader in
January and the expected unilateral Israeli
pullout from Gaza, now rescheduled for mid-August,
have injected new momentum into Japanese Middle
East initiatives.
However, despite Tokyo's
substantial financial contributions, some Israeli
experts believe the current public mood in Israel
is highly suspicious of any outside assistance,
"even if it is American and especially if it is
not American". This climate may hinder Japanese
efforts to become more closely involved in the
peace process.
Dr Mark Heller, director of
research at the Jaffee Center for Strategic
Studies at Tel Aviv University, described the
Israeli attitude to international assistance
offers to Asia Times Online: "There is a general
high level of, almost abstract rejection of, the
entire idea or at least a very great degree of
skepticism and cynicism about it."
A
senior Japanese diplomat closely involved with
Tokyo's Middle East policy brushed aside such
views. He told Asia Times Online, "We expect the
Sharon disengagement plan will create genuine new
momentum in the peace process and a new mood
amongst the people on both sides. If we can revive
the Palestinian economy and improve living
standards, we will help create a whole new
dynamic."
Optimism about disengagement is
not universally shared. Fred Halliday, a professor
of international relations at the London School of
Economics and author of several books on the
Middle East, is dismissive of the entire idea,
believing disengagement will not fundamentally
alter the equation. He told Asia Times Online,
"The Sharon plan is a fake. Let's be clear on
this, it is a fake. There is no commitment from
Sharon for meeting the minimum demands of the
Palestinian people."
Tokyo hopes to
host trilateral summit
Tokyo's assessment
is certainly more positive, and in recent years it
has invested considerable diplomatic time and
energy as well as substantial financial resources
into developing its own Middle East peace
strategy.
Abbas' visit was originally
envisaged as part of a more ambitious trilateral
meeting with Ariel Sharon. However, despite a
concerted effort, Tokyo was unable to arrange it.
Undaunted, both leaders were invited to Tokyo
separately. Sharon is expected to visit Japan in
June.
Koizumi repeated his hope to mediate
a tripartite meeting with Abbas and Sharon to
discuss the peace process. He signaled his
intention to raise the subject with Sharon when he
visits Japan. However, he set no specific date for
the proposed three-way talks. He said Abbas had
already agreed to participate. The Palestinian
leader told the media, "I am always ready to meet
[with Sharon]."
As part of its Middle East
initiatives, Tokyo has already hosted two
Israeli-Palestinian working-level meetings since
2003. The objective is to generate trust between
lawmakers and policy experts from each side. The
third meeting is scheduled to be held this summer.
As a sign of the importance Tokyo attached
to its peace efforts, Abbas' visit was given
extensive media coverage. He appeared on numerous
TV news programs and gave prominent media
interviews.
Besides his audience with
Koizumi, Abbas met with several other senior
figures, including Sadako Ogata, president of the
Japan International Cooperation Agency, Nobutaka
Machimura, the Japanese foreign minister, Katsuya
Okada, leader of the main opposition Democratic
Party of Japan, and Crown Prince Naruhito.
During his visit, the Palestinian leader
repeatedly emphasized his commitment to the peace
process and Palestinian democracy. He told the
Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, "July 17 parliamentary
elections will go ahead as planned." It had been
thought they might be delayed because of fears of
possible gains by the radical Islamist group
Hamas.
Abbas stressed that to achieve a
comprehensive and lasting peace, Israel must
completely withdraw from the West Bank and Gaza,
cease the expansion of Jewish settlements, and
halt the construction of the controversial West
Bank security barrier, which Abbas denounced as an
"Apartheid wall".
Before departing Tokyo
on Tuesday afternoon for a three-day visit to
Beijing, Abbas indicated that the existing
Palestinian diplomatic mission in Tokyo might be
upgraded to a full-fledged embassy. Currently, due
to limited resources, the PA only has a very
restricted presence in Tokyo.
Abbas also
invited Koizumi to pay a visit to the Palestinian
Territories in the near future. The prime minister
immediately responded by saying he would go at the
earliest possible opportunity, indicating Tokyo's
belief that it will play a significant role in
helping resolve the decades-long
Israeli-Palestinian dispute.
J Sean
Curtin is a GLOCOM fellow at the Tokyo-based
Japanese Institute of Global Communications.
(Copyright 2005 Asia Times Online Ltd.
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