[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 23]
[Senate]
[Page 31583]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

                  VISIT OF THE JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER

 Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I rise to extend my welcome to Prime 
Minister Yasuo Fukuda of Japan, who is visiting Washington today.
  Japan is a critical ally and friend of the United States. I believe 
our alliance is fundamental to a peaceful and prosperous Asia-Pacific 
region.
  The Prime Minister's visit comes at an important time. It is crucial 
that our two countries maintain the positive momentum in our 
relationship and work closely together to accomplish shared goals, such 
as denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, stability in South Asia, 
nonproliferation in Iran, and political reform in Burma. As a long-
standing ally, we must consult closely and respect Japan's 
perspectives, even as we contemplate next steps in our negotiations 
with nations like North Korea.
  Thousands of miles away from the Korean peninsula, we face the 
resurgence of the Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan and in the border 
regions of Pakistan. We are all too familiar with the reports that 
suggest the Taliban and al-Qaida are gaining strength. We were reminded 
of this fact in an unsettling report in Tuesday's Washington Post, but 
the most troubling report of all was last July, when the declassified 
National Intelligence Estimate warned of a persistent and growing 
threat from a reconstituted al-Qaida sanctuary in northwest Pakistan.
  It is therefore critical that the U.S. and its partners in the 
international community, including Japan, maintain our focus and 
operations in this region.
  In particular, I wanted to extend to the Prime Minister my 
appreciation for the support that Japan's Self Defense Forces have 
offered U.S. operations in Afghanistan, and hope Japan's deployment of 
refueling tankers will quickly be reauthorized and be extended.
  Our half century alliance with Japan remains vital, based on common 
values and shared interests. There is ample room for improved efforts 
to forge an even stronger and enduring global security partnership. I 
hope that Prime Minister Fukuda's visit will continue the progress 
toward that goal.

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