AP

Posted: 2007-11-20 02:26:34

SINGAPORE, Nov. 20 (Kyodo) - Japan on Tuesday expressed its dissatisfaction over Myanmar’s failure to fully account for the fatal shooting of a Japanese journalist in September, with Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura warning his counterpart that Tokyo may further cut aid to Myanmar depending on its handling of the matter.

In talks with Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win in Singapore on the sidelines of a regional summit, Komura also called for Myanmar’s democratization and urged it to accept the proposals from U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari.

“I told him that special envoy Gambari is Myanmar’s friend and that it should adopt and implement as much as possible what Mr. Gambari suggests,” Komura told reporters after the meeting. “The Japanese government gives its full support to Mr. Gambari as a member of the United Nations and also for the sake of the Myanmar people.”

On the shooting of Japanese video journalist Kenji Nagai, Komura reiterated Japan’s demand for the return of the video camera and tape he was believed to be using to film the protests when shot. Footage taken by other individuals in the area suggests that security forces removed the video camera from Nagai’s body.

“The Myanmar foreign minister said the police will soon brief the Japanese Embassy in Myanmar and that he will give the police strict instructions to make a thorough search for the missing belongings,” Komura said. “I don’t know if these words will be acted on, but I am holding out hope to a certain extent.”

Japan canceled 552 million yen worth of grants-in-aid to Myanmar in light of the shooting but is continuing humanitarian assistance such as support for polio vaccinations.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has abandoned earlier plans to have Gambari, special envoy for U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, brief either the ASEAN leaders’ summit or the broader East Asia Summit in Singapore on the political situation in Myanmar amid strong resistance from Myanmar’s junta.