Japan reconsiders position on Qarabag

The visiting top Japanese diplomat said in Baku on Monday that his country would reconsider its position over the Armenian-Azerbaijani Upper Qarabag conflict.
"Japan's present stance on the Armenian-Azerbaijani Upper Qarabag conflict may not satisfy Azerbaijan, that's why we are still determining our position", First Deputy Foreign Minister Tetsuro Yano said in an interview with journalists.
The Japanese official noted that he had been fully informed about the conflict within his two-day visit to Baku, saying that they needed time to come to the right decision.
Tetsuro Yano was on an official visit to Azerbaijan over February 23-24 to discuss developing bilateral relations in the political, economic and cultural spheres and the current international situation. The Japanese diplomat's visit is considered a continuation of the trip to Azerbaijan on July last year by a delegation called Silk Way Energy Mission, which included representatives of Japanese ministries, business circles, scientific and research entities.
Bilateral talks
Tetsuro Yana held a number of meetings in Baku, including bilateral talks with the Foreign Ministry, and attended the signing of a agreement regarding equipment to be supplied to the linguistics lab at Baku State University through a grant from the Japanese government.
Meeting the Japanese diplomat on Monday, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Xalaf Xalafov said that President Aliyev's visit to Japan in 1998, had laid the foundation for the development of bilateral relations, describing Tetsuro Yano's trip as a continuation of the intergovernmental dialogue.
For his part, Japanese diplomat said his country places special importance to deepening cooperation between the two nations. He also voiced hope that an Azerbaijani embassy would shortly start operating in Japan. Furthermore, he expressed his gratitude to the Azerbaijani side for mutual cooperation within international organizations.
Mr. Xalafov added that Japan's preferential loans played a special role in the progress of the Azerbaijani economy. He thanked the Japanese diplomat for Japanese loans for health, culture, education, agriculture and other fields.
According to Tetsuro Yano, the Japanese government would consider the issue on allocating grants and preferential loans to Azerbaijan in response to suggestions from the Azerbaijani side. Stressing great interest in the Japanese language in Azerbaijan, he noted that his country was ready to conduct academic exchange in this field.
Later, Xalaf Xalafov provided the visitor with detailed information about efforts carried out to settle the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Upper Qarabag through negotiation, underscoring the necessity for joint cooperation during discussions and voting procedures within international organizations in this regard.
Agreements
The signing of agreements between the Japanese and Azerbaijani governments aimed at assisting Azerbaijan in the infrastructure development of educational, public health was held at the Ministry of Education on Monday. The Japanese First Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Tetsuro Yano, attended the signing.
Agreements on education were signed by Azerbaijani Minister for Education Misir Mardanov and the Japanese ambassador Toshiyuki Fujivara. Through grants by the Japanese government, secondary schools in Ismayilli, Saki, Agcabadi and Barda districts will undergo major renewal, routine repairs will be made to several children's homes and the Baku Art Gymnasium, with schools in refugee camps being reconstructed.
$100,000 will be spent on fulfilling agreements in the area of education, the press secretary of the Ministry of Education, Bayram Huseynzada told AssA-Irada.
The public health agreement signed will lead to the renovation of three hospitals.
Yano left for Dubai on Monday evening.
Japan interested in oil exports from Azerbaijan
Japan is interested in importing crude and oil products from Azerbaijan and can supply state-of-the-art technologies in return, the Japanese First Deputy Foreign Minister Tetsuro Yana said at a news conference on Monday concluding his two-day Baku visit.
Japan has already invested $380 million in Azerbaijan's energy industry and has also provided $22 million in grants for the development of agriculture, culture and some other projects, Yano said.
During the negotiations in Baku, Japan and Azerbaijan confirmed their interest in continuing this cooperation, he added.
"Japan attaches great importance to cooperation with Azerbaijan in the Great Silk Road project and is interested in deepening relations in this field," the Japanese diplomat said.
He also pointed out that Japan was interested in improving economic infrastructure, the social sphere and personnel training, saying his country would increase grants and food assistance to Azerbaijan.
He added that Azerbaijan will participate in an international exhibition to be hosted by Japan in 2005.
In April, a group of Azerbaijani experts will visit Japan to study the prospects of further cooperation between the two countries, he said.
"We are developing economic relations with Azerbaijan in three major areas: improvement of the economic infrastructure, the social sphere and the training of human resources," Yano said.
Iraq
Speaking about Japan's foreign policy, Yano said Japan favors a peaceful solution to the conflict over Iraq, but at the same believes that Baghdad should fulfill its obligations to the international community.
"We are also considering the possibility of providing humanitarian aid to Iraq and neighboring countries that could be affected if a war begins in the region," Yano said.