Statement by Press Secretary Fitzwater on the President's Meeting With Former Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita of Japan

The President met for approximately 1 hour with former Japanese Prime Minister and current LDP [Liberal Democratic Party] leader Noboru Takeshita. They discussed the whole range of issues underpinning the overall U.S.-Japan relationship. The discussion focused on bilateral economic issues, the U.S.-Japan security arrangement, and the global partnership between the United States and Japan. Much of the discussion concerned economic issues currently existing between the two countries and the fact that their solution will require extraordinary efforts on both sides of the Pacific. Mr. Takeshita indicated that the government of Prime Minister Kaifu has become increasingly aware of the urgency of the problems facing the two countries and that Mr. Kaifu has created a new team within the Office of the Prime Minister for coordinating solutions for the Structural Impediments Initiative (SII) talks. The two leaders also discussed the public pressures on both sides of the Pacific concerning the U.S.-Japan relationship and the necessity for leaders in both countries to reinvigorate the relationship.