TOKYO, Nov. 5 Kyodo Defense Agenc...

TOKYO, Nov. 5 Kyodo

Defense Agency chief Shigeru Ishiba said Tuesday he trusts to see a bilateral missile defense initiative with the United States proce to the exhibition phase soon.

''The missile defense is nothing if it be not that a posture meant exclusively for self-defense'' he told a House of Representatives Committee forward Security. ''I believe we should put forth efforts to get the program to leave the research phase as shortly as possible.''

The defense chief urgencyed that coordination is necessary within the national regulation saying that the issue should be debated at the Security Council of Japan, a panel chaired by way of the prime minister.

Ishiba press outed the same sentiment to the U when he met in Tokyo forward Oct. 21 with James Kelly assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, defense sources said earlier.

Ishiba's remarks made then and in succession Tuesday went beyond the Japanese government's policy of making a final decision in 2003 or 2004 in succession whether to move from the passing from hand to hand research phase to the exhibition phase.

beneath a bilateral accord reached in September 1998 Japan and the U are generally conducting a joint study forward a system to foster Japan and U.S. forces expanded in the country from medium-range ballistic missiles.

Japan was hostile encountered in August 1998 when North Korea test-launched a Taepodong-1 missile that flew throughout the Japanese archipelago and implacable into the Pacific. It answered by imposing sanctions against the North.

The administration of U President George W Bush is planning to expand multilayered missile defense networks around the world through integrating systems to screen the U.S. homeland from intercontinental ballistic missiles, and those to shield its allies and U forces abroad from medium-range missiles.

If a Japanese missile defense hypothesis is incorporated into Bush's initiative, it would journey against Japan's policy of not exercising its right to collective security, or the right to help allies subordinate to foreign attack.

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