US ambassador reaffirms alliance with Japan under Obama's administration
6/11/2008 18:00
US Ambassador to Japan Thomas Schieffer today reassured Japan that
Washington will continue to "value and nurture" its alliance with Tokyo in the
next administration under President-elect Barack Obama, saying the Japanese
people should be confident "nothing happened yesterday can change
that".
Schieffer said his embassy started preparation from last summer to
ensure a "seamless transition" and now the process should be accelerated with
regard to the US-Japan relations.
"Democrats and Republicans since the end of
the war have believed American security was dependent upon a good, healthy
relationship and alliance with Japan," Schieffer told a news conference in the
wake of yesterday's presidential election results.
"I hope that I can
reassure the people of Japan that America stands with you today as we stood with
you yesterday, as we will stand with you tomorrow," the ambassador
said.
However, the ambassador himself will pack home when Obama swears in on
January 20.
"The US ambassador to foreign countries are the personal
representatives of presidents. My term as the ambassador would end at the same
time as President Obama swears in on Jan. 20," he said, adding that after
spending eight years in Australia and Japan he is "anxious to go home."
In
response to reporters' questions, he said the United States will remain
committed to trade, although definitions of fair trade may differ among
administrations.
He also said that Washington is very "sympathetic" to
Japan's situation on abduction by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and
will continue to support Tokyo's efforts to tackle the unresolved issue.
He
ruled out the possibility of meeting between Obama and Japanese Prime Minister
Taro Aso in upcoming meetings of world's top 20 economies, saying
president-elect traditionally doesn't do that as there is only one president in
the United States.
Xinhua
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