Jan 21 2009 02:56WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 KYODO
With Barack Obama sworn in as the new U.S. president, Japan is certain to step up efforts to forge a good working relationship with his administration.
Many Japanese officials stationed across the United States heaved a sigh of relief when Hillary Clinton said last week the alliance with Japan is a ''cornerstone'' of U.S. policy in Asia.
Tokyo's next goal is to realize a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso and Obama as quickly as possible in a few months' time in a bid to confirm what Clinton said at the highest level.
''It's no wonder Japan wants to set a bilateral summit at an early date,'' said a Japanese official based in the United States. ''It should take place earlier, rather than later.''
Some officials said Tokyo hopes to have a summit ''well before'' the second summit of the Group of 20 major economies to take place in London on April 2.
The first bilateral summit, they said, should not be held on the sidelines of the multilateral meeting, where Obama would meet other leaders, but as a stand-alone one probably in Washington.
A senior State Department official told Kyodo News that although it is premature to refer to a possible date, Obama would also be hopeful about an early summit with Aso.
''Any Japanese prime minister will always get a warm welcome in Washington,'' he said. ''Any Japanese prime minister will be treated as a valued ally and will be on the priority list of world leaders that any U.S. president will want to consult with and meet with.''
Speculation abounds that Aso will dare to travel to Washington for a meeting with Obama anytime before the financial summit if it is welcomed by the new U.S. leader.
But even those officials who hope to see a bilateral summit held early acknowledge that now is not the best time for such talks in view of the fluid political situation in Japan.
The disarray resulting from a divided parliament and Aso's unpopularity has gotten in the way of policy implementation, putting Aso's hold on power at risk.
''Any bilateral summit will be useless as long as Japanese politics remains unstable,'' said another U.S.-based Japanese official, citing the possibility of Aso's resignation after his party's likely defeat in a general election that must be held by September.
He and other officials said Obama would not want to meet any foreign leader who could lose his or her job in the not-too-distant future because any deals made during talks would carry the danger of being thrown away.
Japan faces a plethora of challenges on which it has to work with the United States, including North Korea's nuclear programs, the stability and reconstruction of Iraq and Afghanistan, the realignment of U.S. military forces in Japan and the global financial crisis.
It is widely believed that the next general election in Japan will undoubtedly toss Aso and probably his ruling Liberal Democratic Party from power, with a government led by the No. 1 opposition Democratic Party of Japan an increasingly likely outcome.
A recent Kyodo News survey found the approval rate for Aso's Cabinet came to 19.2 percent, down 6.3 percentage points from the previous survey in December and falling far below the ''critical'' 30-percent mark.
''Under the circumstances, we bureaucrats have to work harder than ever,'' said another Japanese official. ''It's impossible for us to act on behalf of politicians, but we can do something for our national interest.''
==Kyodo
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