[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
[May 3, 1999]
[Pages 681-682]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at a Dinner Honoring Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi of Japan
May 3, 1999

    Ladies and gentlemen, Prime Minister and Mrs. Obuchi, members of the Japanese delegation, and all our 
distinguished guests. It's a great pleasure for Hillary and for me to 
return the hospitality that the Prime Minister extended to me when I 
visited Japan last November.
    In 1963, as a high school student, I first came to this house. There 
I heard President Kennedy

[[Page 682]]

challenge a group of us to make the world a better place. A year earlier 
a young Japanese graduate student walked straight into the office of 
Attorney General Robert Kennedy and asked for a meeting. He left a 
letter saying he was deeply impressed by a speech Kennedy had given at 
Waseda University.
    Keizo Obuchi apparently made his own impression, because a week 
later he got his meeting with Robert Kennedy. He has said often since 
then that that meeting helped kindle within him a desire for public 
service. I understand, Mr. Prime Minister, that the Attorney General's 
graciousness also impressed you. We see it today reflected in your own 
decency and generosity.
    I treasure the bonsai tree you gave me last year, a tree you tended 
yourself. I was honored when you presented me with sake that came from 
His Majesty, the Emperor. And you were kind 
enough to write this warning: Be careful, because overall, sake will 
result in dancing and singing. [Laughter]
    Well, many people were dancing and singing, with or without sake, 
when this year the young Japanese filmmaker Keiko Ibi won an Academy Award for her film on the lives of 
elderly New Yorkers. Her acceptance speech pointed to the possibilities 
for understanding and friendship between people of different cultures.
    That spirit is more important than ever today, as the world 
community works to end the ethnic and religious cleansing in Kosovo. I 
am grateful to Japan for supporting NATO's efforts and for its aid to 
refugees in frontline states--part of Japan's broader commitment to 
relieve human suffering and support peace and freedom around the world. 
You have helped survivors of Central America's hurricanes, supported the 
peace process in the Middle East, promoted democracy in Indonesia and 
stability on the Korean Peninsula. Ratifying the Nuclear Test Ban 
Treaty, fighting deadly disease in Africa, protecting endangered forests 
and oceans--Japan truly is a world leader for all that is best in 
humanity.
    The whole world looks to Japan--and to you, Mr. Prime Minister--for 
that kind of leadership. And we are pulling for you and working with you 
for economic policies to lift the lives of Japan's citizens, as well as 
the people in your region.
    We share the same dreams for a better future. We are united in an 
alliance of fundamental importance to peace and freedom. As I said to 
you in Tokyo, all is possible when our countries join hands.
    I ask all of you to join me in a toast to the Prime Minister, to 
Mrs. Obuchi, and to the people of Japan.

Note: The President spoke at 9:05 p.m. in a pavilion on the South Lawn 
at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister 
Obuchi's wife, Chizuko; and Emperor Akihito of Japan. The transcript 
released by the Office of the Press Secretary also included the remarks 
of Prime Minister Obuchi.