Albright says sorry to Japan city, vexed by whaling

Albright, left, met Kono on Sunday

TOKYO (Reuters) -- U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright made up with the Japanese city of Miyazaki on Sunday but blasted Tokyo for hunting whales.

First she turned on the diplomatic charm, hailing deep ties between the world's two largest economies in the southern resort town that hosted a Group of Eight gathering that she missed because of Middle East peace talks.

But she did not mince her words with Foreign Minister Yohei Kono, whom she met for twice as long as planned, focusing mainly on bilateral and regional issues, including North Korea which lobbed a medium-range missile over Japan in 1998.

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Whaling appeared to be the issue of most immediate concern.

"We are deeply troubled by what is happening," she told a news conference, referring to the departure of a Japanese whaling fleet this weekend to hunt three species protected under U.S. law.

"Whether it's for commercial or research purposes, it should not be happening," she said as Kono stood by her side.

Her Japanese counterpart did not mention the issue during their comments, which were otherwise cordial in tone and stressed the strength of their relations and breadth of shared concerns.

But Albright quoted Kono as saying he would pass on Washington's "very deep concern" to Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori.

She is due to meet Mori on Monday before going to seek the Vatican's support on resolving the fate of Jerusalem -- the issue that brought the Middle East summit to a halt last Tuesday.

U.S. President Bill Clinton, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and a leading environmental group have all urged Japan to stop the planned hunting of whales that Tokyo says is for research purposes and allowed under international law.

The United States and other critics counter that the meat, a delicacy in Japan, ends up on the market and that other, non-lethal methods are available to research the animal.

Not a hint of discord emerged in Albright's trip to Miyazaki, which almost had to be cancelled as a typhoon hovered near the coastal city.

In a speech to schoolchildren at a hall named after her, she thanked Miyazaki: "For allowing me to visit even though I am so late... I'm very glad that I finally made it."

Even beforehand, it seemed the townspeople had forgiven her as they lined the streets from the airport to town despite rain, strong winds and heavy clouds. They waved U.S. flags, displayed banners reading "Welcome Secretary Albright" and serenaded her with a U.S.-style brass band.

In her speech, she stressed areas of cooperation, including the search for stability on the Korean peninsula, fighting polio and AIDS, and limiting the damage from climate change.

Mori was expected to meet Albright on Monday

Albright and Kono discussed their respective landmark meetings with North Korean Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun at an Asian security conference this week in Thailand.

But she said both learnt similar things about Stalinist Pyongyang's recently reported offer to scrap its missile programme in return for help in space. "Not a lot," she said.

In Miyazaki, Albright underscored the historic nature of her talks in Bangkok, where she held the highest level U.S.-North Korean meeting since the peninsula's 1950-53 war.

"This might not seem like much to students here today, but consider that the two Koreas never really made peace as the war between them ended.

"And that war began when I was 13 years old, and you know how old I am," the 63-year-old secretary of state said.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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