“Such
leadership is needed urgently right now if we are to ‘seal a deal’ in
Copenhagen that all the world’s governments can agree on,” Mr. Ban told
reporters in Tokyo that he impressed upon the Prime Minister during their
meeting.
Negotiations
are expected to conclude in the Danish capital in December on an accord to
replace the Kyoto Protocol, whose first commitment period ends in 2012.
Calling
climate change “the most crucial issue of the day for humanity,” the
Secretary-General said he counts on Japan to play a “bold and active role
towards this historic objective.”
Also
discussed was the situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
(DPRK), with both leaders stressing the need for all nations to fully
implement last month’s Security Council resolution in response to the
country’s nuclear test in May.
That
resolution imposed tougher sanctions on the country, including a tighter arms
embargo, and demanded that it “not conduct any further nuclear test or any
launch using ballistic missile technology.”
The
Secretary-General said today that during his meeting with Mr. Aso, he
underscored the need to resume dialogue, including through the Six-Party
talks, bringing together the DPRK, Republic of Korea, Japan, China, Russia and
the United States.
“I
will spare no effort in facilitating the achievement of verifiable
denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, as well as durable peace and
stability in the region and beyond,” he told
journalists.
On
Myanmar – where Mr. Ban is scheduled to visit later this week – he said
that he expressed his appreciation for Japan’s support for UN efforts in the
South-East Asian nation.
He
also thanked Mr. Aso for Japan’s decision to take part in UN peacekeeping
operations’ standby arrangement.
This
morning, the Secretary-General, who arrived in Japan yesterday, met with
Japanese business leaders from the Keizai Doyukai (association of corporate
executives) and the Global Compact Japan network, which are striving to usher
in a new era of responsible and sustainable business, over breakfast, his
spokesperson, Michele Montas, said today.
Following
that event, he visited Tokyo University, where he held a lively exchange with
students.
Mr.
Ban also appeared on a children’s news television programme in a bid to
reach out to Japan’s next generation of leaders, followed by a meeting with
Japanese celebrities who serve as UN Goodwill Ambassadors, Ms. Montas said.
Later,
he will leave for Singapore and travel on to Myanmar on Friday for a two-day
visit.
The
Secretary-General told reporters in Tokyo yesterday that he realized there
were concerns about the timing of the visit, given that the trial of Nobel
Peace Prize laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is pending.
“It
may be the case that the trial may happen during my visit in Myanmar. I am
very much conscious of that. At the same time, to find the most appropriate
timing has been a challenge for me, too,” he said, adding that he would use
the visit to try to “raise in the strongest possible terms” the concerns
of the international community about the situation inside Myanmar.
From
Myanmar, he will travel to Switzerland, Ireland and Italy, where he plans to
attend the summit of the so-called Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations.
