美日就捕鲸问题发生争执：日官员威胁或退出“印太经济框架”，美国让步
Based Japan just tells the US to sit the **** down on the whaling issue in the IPEF.(Observer Network News) The heads of state of the United States, Japan and South Korea are about to hold a " historic summit " at Camp David, but recently, the whaling issue has become a "thorn" in the relationship between the United States and Japan. Earlier sources revealed that the U.S. trade representative has been urging Japan to accept the anti-whaling clauses in the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" (IPEF), which caused strong dissatisfaction in Japan and even threatened to withdraw from the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework."
According to a report by the British "Financial Times" on August 17, several people familiar with the matter said that under Japan's fierce opposition, the Biden administration has given up putting pressure on Japan and will no longer advocate adding any Wording to ban whaling.
Despite international condemnation, Japan has continued its whaling operations in recent years. Picture from foreign media
The U.S. Trade Representative's Office, led by Dai Qi, has been pushing Japan to accept a ban on whaling, the report said. But according to three people familiar with the matter, the US trade representative decided to compromise with Japan due to Japanese opposition.
"Financial Times" stated that senior officials from other departments of the Biden administration, including the White House and the State Department, also opposed this, believing that adding language banning whaling to the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" agreement would jeopardize the agreement itself and lead to America's disagreement with Japan, arguably America's most important ally in Asia.
The White House and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative had no comment. A spokesman for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also did not comment on the status of negotiations on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework agreement, but said, "For all Indo-Pacific Economic Framework members, it is important to focus on reaching a number of forward-looking conclusions on the positive aspects of the negotiations." Agreement, will be constructive".
In 1986, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) adopted the "Global Convention for the Ban of Whaling", prohibiting the parties to engage in commercial whaling. As a contracting party and a traditional whaling power, Japan has also stopped commercial whaling since 1988, but still engages in oceanic whaling in the name of "investigation and scientific research". At the same time, there are still small-scale whaling in some coastal areas, and the targets are small whales that are not included in the jurisdiction of the Convention.
In June 2019, Japan withdrew from the International Whaling Commission and resumed commercial whaling in its territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from July of that year.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative initially pushed for a blanket ban on whaling, a person familiar with the negotiations said, the Financial Times reported last week. Although the U.S. later softened its stance, Japan remained adamant that it would not support a deal that included any restrictions on whaling, he said.
A senior Japanese official bluntly stated that it is "impossible" for Tokyo to compromise on the whaling issue, and the Japanese government does not even consider it a "disputed issue". He said Japan would not join the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework if any language banning whaling was included in the agreement.
In a report on the 17th, the "Financial Times" mentioned that on August 18, local time, US President Biden was preparing to receive Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yue at Camp David to hold a "historic trilateral summit." The purpose of this summit is to bring the three countries closer in the security field, but the whaling issue has become a "thorn" in the relationship between the United States and Japan.
Christopher Johnstone, an expert on Japanese issues at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a US think tank, and a former senior official of the White House and the Pentagon, said in an analysis: "'Indo-Pacific Economic Framework' is not a place to solve the whaling problem, so the relevant wording has been changed from Removal from the agenda would be a victory for diplomatic common sense. While Japan's active partnership in the 'Indo-Pacific Economic Framework' is far more important to U.S. interests, the focus on whaling would put that partnership at risk."
"Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" leaders video conference, pictured from the website of the US Department of Commerce
In May last year, the United States announced the launch of the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework". Member countries specifically include the United States, Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. In addition to the United States, India and Fiji, the other 11 countries are members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP).
In May of this year, as another measure to counter China's influence in the region, the US announced that the 14 members of the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" had basically completed negotiations on an agreement to improve supply chain resilience and security. This US-led agreement aims to establish a supply chain that "excludes China". It is the first practical result of the one-year discussion since the Biden administration proposed the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework".
With regard to the United States’ behavior of forming gangs and factions in the Asia-Pacific region, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated on August 18 that in the face of the international security situation with intertwined events, all parties should uphold the concept of a security community, adhere to true multilateralism, and work together to deal with various issues. a security challenge. No country should seek its own security at the expense of other countries' security interests and regional peace and stability.
"Who is creating conflicts and exacerbating tension? The international community has its own opinion." Wang Wenbin pointed out that the Asia-Pacific region is a highland of peaceful development and a hotbed of cooperative development, and must never become a arena for geopolitical competition. The attempt to cobble together various exclusive cliques and cliques and bring camp confrontation and military blocs into the Asia-Pacific is unpopular and will inevitably arouse vigilance and opposition from countries in the region.
I want a whale meat ramen now!!!
Whale meat are NOT negotiable!
