Ex-Japan PM Hosokawa Shocked to Hear 50 Pct Chance of Korea Contingency

Tokyo, Dec. 24 (Jiji Press)–Former Japanese Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa has recounted how shocked he was to hear a U.S. view that there was over a 50 pct chance of a Korean Peninsula contingency during the 1994 North Korea nuclear crisis. In a recent interview with Jiji Press, the 87-year-old, who dealt with heightened tensions in the region as prime minister, said that Japan received intelligence from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency on Feb. 14, 1994, that North Korea was preparing for a war and that there was over a 50 pct chance that the reclusive state might invade South Korea in the next six to 18 months. The CIA expected that the invasion might happen in June or July of 1995. “I felt a strong sense of crisis, like I was groping around in the dark,” Hosokawa said of that time. “I wrote in my diary: ‘Are we all simply too ignorant?'” “I instructed (my government) to consider all possible scenarios,” he said, adding that the government came up with various suggestions. The intel was provided just after he returned from a U.S. trip to meet then President Bill Clinton. Shortly before his visit, Hosokawa was briefed by Japanese officials, including the chief of the Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office, on an interim report on what measures Tokyo could take under existing laws if sanctions were imposed on North Korea. The report said that Japan could not turn a blind eye to such a situation since the country, along with South Korea, “would face the biggest threat,” Hosokawa said. Hosokawa held talks with Clinton in Washington on Feb. 11, 1994. Clinton “didn’t really voice strong opinions about North Korea and instead left the explanation (on the U.S. stance over Pyongyang) to” then Secretary of State Warren Christopher, Hosokawa said. According to the former prime minister, Christopher talked about a possible contingency, warning of unpredictable developments in the North Korean situation. Those on the U.S. side who took the “toughest” stance on the North Korea issue included members of Congress, Hosokawa said. Then Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell and Senate Minority Leader Bob Dole showed concerns about possible information leaks, saying that some within the Japanese ruling camp had close ties with Pyongyang, according to Hosokawa. Hosokawa said that upon returning home, he shared U.S. concerns with then Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobuo Ishihara and instructed the government to look into measures that could be taken legally in case of a Korean Peninsula contingency. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]