ISLAMABAD, 1 May 2005 — Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi promised Pakistan’s leader yesterday that Tokyo will resume loans to the South Asian country that were suspended when it conducted nuclear tests in 1998, a Japanese spokesman said.
Japan had lent about $500 million each year to Pakistan before the suspension.
Koizumi arrived here this morning for two-day official visit of Pakistan. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz received him at the airport. Japan and Pakistan will ink various agreements including technical and grant assistance.
Koizumi told President Pervez Musharraf that “Japan plans to restore yen loans,” spokesman Akira Chiba said.
Koizumi held wide-ranging talks with Musharraf which include non-proliferation, counter terrorism and UN reforms, marking a new phase in economic and political ties.
As the two met Japanese diplomats said Tokyo was keen to have an update on Pakistan’s investigation into the dismantled nuclear proliferation network of the country’s disgraced atomic scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan.
They said this included the extent of Qadeer’s involvement with North Korea when he ran the illegal network to sell nuclear secrets to other countries.
Officials said Musharraf and Koizumi spoke for an hour and continued the talks later at a working luncheon.
After the talks a Japanese official told reporters Musharraf had assured Koizumi that Pakistan would share any new information immediately with Japan on Qadeer’s illegal proliferation ring.
He said Musharraf emphasized that Pakistan had put in place a strong command and control system along with an export control regime to improve safeguards surrounding the country’s nuclear industry.
He said the Pakistani leader also told Koizumi that Qadeer’s actions did not involve either the military or the government.
Qadeer was given a conditional pardon by Musharraf early last year after he publicly confessed to passing on nuclear technology to North Korea, Iran and Libya.
Koizumi has conveyed his concern over Qadeer’s activities in the past, which coincided with newspaper reports in Tokyo that North Korea was planning a nuclear test as early as June.
Koizumi, who flew here after two nights in India where he pledged closer economic and security ties, was to hold formal talks focusing on bilateral trade and economic relations with Aziz later in the day.
A Japanese diplomat earlier said Tokyo wanted to raise relations with Pakistan to the level of a strategic partnership.
“There is going to be a joint declaration that will mark a new phase of strategic relations between Japan and Pakistan,” the diplomat said.
Koizumi will oversee the signing of three agreements including grants worth $87 million for a water purification project and an irrigation scheme.
The two sides will also conclude a technical cooperation agreement.
The Japanese leader’s regional tour is seen as a diplomatic thrust by Tokyo to consolidate links with India and Pakistan to counter-balance China’s growing influence in the region.
His tour also coincides with Japan, India, Germany and Brazil seeking permanent Security Council seats in the United Nations but Pakistan has strongly opposed India’s move. Musharraf told Koizumi Pakistan would have supported Japan’s bid for a permanent seat if it was a matter involving only Tokyo.
“As a matter of principle, Pakistan cannot agree with the expansion of the UN Security Council which might affect” the equality of the global body, Musharraf was quoted as telling Koizumi by the Japanese official.
