The United States declined comment Monday on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s reported plan to address Congress when he visits Washington later this year, only saying his visit would be welcome.
“That’s a discussion I’m sure that will happen between officials in Congress and the administration. We certainly welcome his visit to the United States, but beyond that, I’m sure we will talk about that at a later date,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said at a regular briefing.
Psaki was answering a question whether the U.S. would welcome Abe’s speech before Congress.
Abe’s possible speech before Congress is a sensitive issue because critics claim he should not be allowed to do so as he has tried to whitewash Japan’s militaristic past and wartime atrocities, such as the country’s sexual enslavement of Korean and other Asian women for its troops.
South Korean organizations in the U.S. have launched a campaign to derail Abe’s plans.
Abe conveyed the wish to address Congress when he met with a delegation of U.S. lawmakers earlier this month, and U.S. House Speaker John Boehner and other congressional leaders are in favor of it, according to diplomatic sources in Washington.
Should the proposed address be realized, Abe would be the first Japanese prime minister to address the U.S. House of Representatives in 54 years. He would also be only the fourth Japanese leader to do so after Shigeru Yoshida in 1954, Nobusuke Kishi in 1957 and Hayato Ikeda in 1961.
Moreover, Abe is also reportedly seeking to be the first Japanese prime minister to address a joint session of the House and the Senate. Former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi pushed for such an address in 2000, but it did not happen as the then-House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman raised objections, citing Japan’s wartime past.
According to the private information service provider Nelson Report, Abe’s wish has been “green-lighted” by the current Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), though it is still unclear whether the planned address will be before a joint session or just the House.
Abe’s visit, expected in late April or early May, is likely to be an occasion for the U.S. and Japan to celebrate progress in negotiations on an Asia-Pacific free trade deal, known as the Trans Pacific Partnership, and a revision to their defense guidelines. (Yonhap)
