Japan not to invite Taiwan president to 1995 APEC meet

Japan not to invite Taiwan president to 1995 APEC meet

JAKARTA (Reuter): Japan will not invite Taiwan President Lee
Teng-hui to next year's leaders meeting of the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Osaka, Japanese Foreign
Minister Yohei Kono said on Sunday.

"We understand China's position," Japanese officials quoted
Kono as telling his Chinese counterpart Qian Qichen. "We will
conduct affairs on the model of (APEC meetings at) Seattle and
Indonesia."

When Taiwan and Hong Kong joined APEC along with China in
1991, they agreed only to send economic ministers to forum
meetings. This format is also for APEC leaders meeting, with the
first one in Seattle last year and the second at Bogor on
Tuesday.

The Taiwan issue has clouded recent Sino-Japanese ties. China
threatened to boycott last month's Hiroshima Asian Games if Lee
attended the opening ceremony. In the end, Taiwan backed down and
sent the vice president.

"Sometimes there are unpleasant things in bilateral ties,"
Japanese officials quoted Qian as telling Kono in Sunday's talks
in Jakarta. "Politicians and governments must resolve these
issues in a serious manner."

Kono repeated Japan's concerns over China's nuclear weapons
testing and indicated this might force Japan to withhold the
fourth package of yen loans to China for 1996-1998, estimated at
about 80 billion yen ($800 million).

"We ask for China's conscious action," Kono told China.
"Japan's national feeling may not allow the aid package to
proceed."

Qian replied by saying only that China hopes for an early
conclusion of the Comprehensive (Nuclear) Test Ban Treaty, now
under discussion in Geneva.

In any case, Kono told Qian, Japan would like to finalize the
yen loan package before the end of the year.

Foreign Ministry officials would not confirm Japanese news
reports saying Murayama would visit Beijing next month.