Clinton meets with opposition leader Ozawa

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TOKYO, Feb. 17 Kyodo -
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took an unusual step for a top U.S.
diplomat Tuesday by holding talks with Democratic Party of Japan leader Ichiro
Ozawa, with a major power shift seeming increasingly possible in Japanese
politics.

Clinton and Ozawa agreed to step up efforts to strengthen bilateral ties during
their meeting at a Tokyo hotel, according to the DPJ leader, who is widely
expected to take the helm if his party ousts the ruling coalition led by
embattled Prime Minister Taro Aso in a general election this year.
Ozawa said the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan was among topics in the
talks following the signing of a pact earlier in the day on the relocation of
U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam between Clinton and Japanese Foreign Minister
Hirofumi Nakasone.
''It's important for both countries to share the same view on global strategies
before tackling specific issues,'' Ozawa said as he briefed reporters on the
talks. ''I also said both sides must be on an equal footing and one should not
be subordinated to the other.''
Ozawa said he and Clinton agreed that the bilateral security treaty signed in
1960 has delivered good results for Japan as well as Asia and hopefully both
countries will enhance the alliance over the next 50 years.
The meeting took place amid speculation that the DPJ could take over from the
Liberal Democratic Party following a lower house election to be held by this
fall, with public support for Aso having plunged to a point considered critical
for his party to hold onto power.
Earlier on Tuesday, Aso's Cabinet was dealt a fresh blow with the resignation
of Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa, who came under fire for appearing to be
drunk at a press conference after the Group of Seven financial leaders' meeting
in Rome at the weekend.
Clinton and Aso met shortly before her talks with Ozawa.
According to DPJ officials, Clinton requested earlier this month that a meeting
with Ozawa be included as part of her first overseas trip since assuming the
post of secretary of state in Barack Obama's administration.
Ozawa said his talks with Clinton also included such issues as North Korea's
nuclear weapons program and cooperation between Japan, the United States and
China for regional stability.
While Ozawa said progress in democracy in China will be one of the biggest
issues for Japan and the world, Clinton stressed the importance of trilateral
ties between Washington, Tokyo and Beijing.
In response to Clinton's demand for continued exchanges of opinions between the
Obama administration and the DPJ, Ozawa said he will ''make utmost efforts to
win the upcoming election.''
==Kyodo