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Full text: Barack Obama's speech in Tokyo
Published: November 14 2009 03:16 | Last updated: November 14 2009 18:10

Remarks of President Barack Obama
Suntory Hall
Tokyo, Japan
November 14, 2009

Good morning. It is a great honor to be in Tokyo - the first stop on my first
visit to Asia as President. It's good to be among so many of you - Japanese and
Americans - who work every day to strengthen the bonds between our two
countries, including my longtime friend and our new ambassador to Japan, John
Roos.

It is wonderful to be back in Japan. When I was a young boy, my mother brought
me to Kamakura, where I looked up at that centuries-old symbol of peace and
tranquility - the great bronze Amida Buddha. As a child, I was more focused on
the matcha ice cream. But I have never forgotten the warmth and hospitality that
the Japanese people showed a young American far from home.

I feel that same spirit on this visit. In the gracious welcome of Prime Minister
Hatoyama. In the honor of meeting with Their Imperial Majesties, the Emperor and
Empress on the 20th anniversary of his accession to the Chrysanthemum Throne. In
the hospitality shown by the Japanese people. And of course, I could not come
here without sending greetings and my gratitude to the citizens of Obama, Japan.

I am beginning my journey here for a simple reason. Since taking office, I have
worked to renew American leadership and pursue a new era of engagement with the
world based on mutual interests and mutual respect. And our efforts in the Asia
Pacific will be rooted, in no small measure, through an enduring and revitalized
alliance between the United States and Japan.

From my first days in office, we have worked to strengthen the ties that bind
our nations. The first foreign leader that I welcomed to the White House was the
prime minister of Japan, and for the first time in nearly fifty years, the first
foreign trip by an American secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, was to Asia,
starting in Japan.

In two months, our alliance will mark its 50th anniversary - a day when
President Dwight Eisenhower stood next to Japan's Prime Minister and said that
our two nations were creating "an indestructible partnership" based on "equality
and mutual understanding."

In the half century since, that alliance has endured as a foundation of our
security and prosperity. It has helped us become the world's two largest
economies, with Japan emerging as America's second-largest trading partner
outside of North America. It has evolved as Japan has played a larger role on
the world stage, and made important contributions to stability around the world
- from reconstruction in Iraq, to combating piracy off the Horn of Africa, to
assistance for the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan - most recently through
its remarkable leadership in providing additional commitments to international
development efforts there.

Above all, our alliance has endured because it reflects our common values - a
belief in the democratic right of free people to choose their own leaders and
realize their own dreams; a belief that made possible the election of both Prime
Minister Hatoyama and myself on the promise of change. And together, we are
committed to providing a new generation of leadership for our people, and our
alliance.

That is why, at this critical moment in history, the two of us have not only
reaffirmed our alliance - we have agreed to deepen it. We have agreed to move
expeditiously through a joint working group to implement the agreement that our
two governments reached on restructuring US forces in Okinawa. And as our
alliance evolves and adapts for the future, we will always strive to uphold the
spirit that President Eisenhower described long ago - a partnership of equality
and mutual respect.

But while our commitment to this region begins in Japan, it does not end here.
The United States of America may have started as a series of ports and cities
along the Atlantic, but for generations we also have been a nation of the
Pacific. Asia and the United States are not separated by this great ocean; we
are bound by it. We are bound by our past - by the Asian immigrants who helped
build America, and the generations of Americans in uniform who have served and
sacrificed to keep this region secure and free. We are bound by our shared
prosperity - by the trade and commerce upon which millions of jobs and families
depend. And we are bound by our people - by the Asian Americans who enrich every
segment of American life. and all the people whose lives, like our countries,
are interwoven.

My own life is a part of that story. I am an American President who was born in
Hawaii and lived in Indonesia as a boy. My sister Maya was born in Jakarta, and
later married a Chinese-Canadian. My mother spent nearly a decade working in the
villages of Southeast Asia, helping women buy a sewing machine or an education
that might give them a foothold in the world economy. So the Pacific rim has
helped shape my view of the world.

Since that time, perhaps no region has changed as swiftly or dramatically.
Controlled economies have given way to open markets. Dictatorships have become
democracies. Living standards have risen while poverty has plummeted. And
through all these changes, the fortunes of America and the Asia Pacific have
become more closely linked than ever before.

So I want every American to know that we have a stake in the future of this
region, because what happens here has a direct affect on our lives at home. This
is where we engage in much of our commerce and buy many of our goods. And this
is where we can export more of our own products and create jobs back home in the
process. This is a place where the risk of a nuclear arms race threatens the
security of the wider world, and where extremists who defile a great religion
plan attacks on both our continents. And there can be no solution to our energy
security and our climate challenge without the rising powers and developing
nations of the Asia Pacific.

To meet these common challenges, the United States looks to strengthen old
alliances and build new partnerships with the nations of this region. To do
this, we look to America's treaty alliances with Japan, South Korea, Australia,
Thailand and the Philippines - alliances that are not historical documents from
a bygone era, but abiding commitments to each other that are fundamental to our
shared security.

These alliances continue to provide the bedrock of security and stability that
has allowed the nations and peoples of this region to pursue opportunity and
prosperity that was unimaginable at the time of my first visit to Japan. And
even as American troops are engaged in two wars around the world, our commitment
to Japan's security and to Asian security is unshakeable, and it can be seen in
our deployments throughout the region -above all, through our young men and
women in uniform

We look to emerging nations that are poised to play a larger role - both in the
Asia Pacific region and the wider world. Places like Indonesia and Malaysia that
have adopted democracy, developed their economies, and tapped the great
potential of their own people.

We look to rising powers with the view that in the 21st century, the national
security and economic growth of one country need not come at the expense of
another. I know there are many who question how the United States perceives
China's emergence. But as I have said - in an inter-connected world, power does
not need to be a zero-sum game, and nations need not fear the success of
another. Cultivating spheres of cooperation - not competing spheres of influence
- will lead to progress in the Asia Pacific.

As with any nation, America will approach China with a focus on our interests.
And it is precisely for this reason that it is important to pursue pragmatic
cooperation with China on issues of mutual concern - because no one nation can
meet the challenges of the 21st century alone, and the United States and China
will both be better off when we are able to meet them together. That is why we
welcome China's efforts to play a greater role on the world stage - a role in
which their growing economy is joined by growing responsibility. China's
partnership has proved critical in our effort to jumpstart economic recovery.
China has promoted security and stability in Afghanistan and Pakistan. And it is
now committed to the global nonproliferation regime, and supporting the pursuit
of the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

So the United States does not seek to contain China, nor does a deeper
relationship with China mean a weakening of our bilateral alliances. On the
contrary, the rise of a strong, prosperous China can be a source of strength for
the community of nations. And so in Beijing and beyond, we will work to deepen
our Strategic and Economic Dialogue, and improve communication between our
militaries. We will not agree on every issue, and the United States will never
waver in speaking up for the fundamental values that we hold dear - and that
includes respect for the religion and cultures of all people. Because support
for human rights and human dignity is ingrained in America. But we can move
these discussions forward in a spirit of partnership rather than rancour.

In addition to our bilateral relations, we also believe that the growth of
multilateral organizations can advance the security and prosperity of this
region. I know that the United States has been disengaged from these
organizations in recent years. So let me be clear: those days have passed. As an
Asia Pacific nation, the United States expects to be involved in the discussions
that shape the future of this region, and to participate fully in appropriate
organizations as they are established and evolve.

That is the work that I will begin on this trip. The Asia Pacific Economic
Cooperation forum will continue to promote regional commerce and prosperity, and
I look forward to participating in that forum tomorrow. Asean will remain a
catalyst for Southeast Asian dialogue, cooperation and security, and I look
forward to becoming the first American President to meet with all ten of its
leaders. And the United States looks forward to engaging with the East Asia
Summit more formally as it plays a role in addressing the challenges of our
time.

We seek this deeper and broader engagement because we know our collective future
depends on it. And I'd like to speak for a bit about what that future can look
like, and what we must do to advance our prosperity, our security, and our
universal values and aspirations.

First, we must strengthen our economic recovery, and pursue growth that is both
balanced and sustained.

The quick, unprecedented and coordinated action taken by Asia Pacific nations
and others has averted economic catastrophe, and helped us begin to emerge from
the worst recession in generations. And we have taken the historic step of
reforming our international economic architecture, so that the G-20 is now the
premier forum for international economic cooperation.

This shift to the G-20 - along with the greater voice that is being given to
Asian nations in international financial institutions - clearly demonstrates the
broader and more inclusive engagement that America seeks in the 21st century.
And as a key member of the G-8, Japan has and will continue to play a leading
role in shaping the future of the international financial architecture.

Now that we are on the brink of economic recovery, we must also ensure that it
can be sustained. We simply cannot return to the same cycles of boom and bust
that led us into a global recession. We cannot follow the same policies that led
to such imbalanced growth. One of the important lessons this recession has
taught us is the limits of depending primarily on American consumers and Asian
exports to drive growth. Because when Americans found themselves in debt or out
of work, demand for Asian goods plummeted. When demand fell sharply, exports
from this region fell sharply. Since the economies of this region are so
dependent on exports, they stopped growing. And the global recession only
deepened.

We have now reached one of those rare inflection points in history where we have
the opportunity to take a different path. And that must begin with the G20
pledge that we made in Pittsburgh to pursue a new strategy for balanced economic
growth.

I'll be saying more about this in Singapore, but in the United States, this new
strategy will mean saving more and spending less, reforming our financial system
and reducing our long-term deficit. It will also mean a greater emphasis on
exports that we can build, produce, and sell all over the world. For America,
this is a jobs strategy. Right now, our exports support millions upon millions
of well-paying American jobs. Increasing those exports by just a small amount
has the potential to create millions more. These are jobs making everything from
wind turbines and solar panels to the technology you use every day.

For Asia, striking this better balance will provide an opportunity for workers
and consumers to enjoy higher standards of living that their remarkable
increases in productivity have made possible. It will allow for greater
investments in housing, infrastructure, and the service sector. And a more
balanced global economy will lead to prosperity that reaches further and deeper.

For decades, the United States has had one of the most open markets in the
world, and that openness has helped fuel the success of so many countries in
this region and others over the last century. In this new era, opening other
markets around the globe will be critical not just to America's prosperity, but
to the world's.

An integral part of this new strategy is working toward an ambitious and
balanced Doha agreement - not any agreement, but an agreement that will open up
markets and increase exports around the world. We are ready to work with our
Asian partners to see if we can achieve that objective in a timely fashion - and
we invite our regional trading partners to join us at the table.

We also believe that continued integration of the economies of this region will
benefit workers, consumers, and businesses in all of our nations. Together, with
our South Korean friends, we will work through the issues necessary to move
forward on a trade agreement with them. The United States will also be engaging
with the Trans Pacific partnership countries with the goal of shaping a regional
agreement that will have broad-based membership and the high standards worthy of
a 21st century trade agreement.

Working in partnership, this is how we can sustain this recovery and advance our
common prosperity. But it's not enough to pursue growth that is balanced. We
also need growth that is sustainable - for our planet and the future generations
that will live here.

Already, the United States has taken more steps to combat climate change in ten
months than we have in our recent history: by embracing the latest science,
investing in new energy, raising efficiency standards, forging new partnerships,
and engaging in international climate negotiations. In short, America knows
there is more work to do - but we are meeting our responsibility, and will
continue to do so.

That includes striving for success in Copenhagen. I have no illusions that this
will be easy, but the contours of a way forward are clear. All nations must
accept their responsibility. Those nations - like my own - who have been the
leading emitters must have clear reduction targets. Developing countries will
need to take substantial actions to curb their emissions, aided by finance and
technology. And there must be transparency and accountability for domestic
actions.

Each of us must do what we can to grow our economies without endangering our
planet - and we must do it together. But the good news is that if we put the
right rules and incentives in place, it will unleash the creative power of our
best scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs. It will lead to new jobs, new
businesses, and entire new industries.

Yet, even as we confront this challenge of the 21st century, we must also
redouble our efforts to meet a threat to our security that is the legacy of the
20th century - the danger posed by nuclear weapons.

In Prague, I affirmed America's commitment to rid the world of nuclear weapons,
and laid out a comprehensive agenda to pursue this goal. I am pleased that Japan
has joined us in this effort. No two nations on Earth know better what these
weapons can do, and together we must seek a future without them. This is
fundamental to our common security, and this is a great test of our common
humanity. Our very future hangs in the balance.

Let me be clear: so long as these weapons exist, the United States will maintain
a strong and effective nuclear deterrent that guarantees the defence of our
allies - including South Korea and Japan.

But we must recognize that an escalating nuclear arms race in this region would
undermine decades of growing security and prosperity. So we are called upon to
uphold the basic bargain of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty - that all
nations have a right to peaceful nuclear energy; that nations with nuclear
weapons have a responsibility to move toward nuclear disarmament; and those
without them have the responsibility to forsake them.

Indeed, Japan serves as an example to the world that true peace and power can be
achieved by taking this path. For decades, Japan has enjoyed the benefits of
peaceful nuclear energy, while rejecting nuclear arms development - and by any
measure, this has increased Japan's security, and enhanced its position.

To meet our responsibilities - and move forward with the agenda I laid out in
Prague - we have passed a unanimous UN Security Council resolution embracing
this international effort. We are pursuing a new agreement with Russia to reduce
our nuclear stockpiles. We will work to ratify and bring into force the Test Ban
Treaty. And next year at our Nuclear Security Summit, we will advance our goal
of securing all of the world's vulnerable nuclear materials within four years.

As I have said before, strengthening the global nonproliferation regime is not
about singling out individual nations. It is about all nations living up to
their responsibilities. That includes the Islamic Republic of Iran. And it
includes North Korea.

For decades, North Korea has chosen a path of confrontation and provocation,
including the pursuit of nuclear weapons. It should be clear where that path
leads. We have tightened sanctions on Pyongyang. We have passed the most
sweeping UN Security Council resolution to date to restrict their weapons of
mass destruction activities. We will not be cowed by threats, and we will
continue to send a clear message through our actions, and not just our words:
North Korea's refusal to meet its international obligations will lead only to
less security - not more.

Yet there is another path that can be taken. Working in tandem with our partners
- and supported by direct diplomacy - the United States is prepared to offer
North Korea a different future. Instead of an isolation that has compounded the
horrific repression of its own people, North Korea could have a future of
international integration. Instead of gripping poverty, it could have a future
of economic opportunity - where trade, investment and tourism can offer the
North Korean people the chance at a better life. And instead of increasing
insecurity, it could have a future of greater security and respect. This respect
cannot be earned through belligerence. It must be reached by a nation that takes
its place in the international community by fully living up to its international
obligations.

The path for North Korea to realize this future is clear: a return to the
Six-Party Talks; upholding previous commitments, including a return to the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; and the full and verifiable denuclearization
of the Korean peninsula. And full normalization with its neighbours can only
come if Japanese families receive a full accounting of those who have been
abducted. These are all steps that can be taken by the North Korean government,
if they are interested in improving the lives of their people and joining the
community of nations.

And as we are vigilant in confronting this challenge, we will stand with all of
our Asian partners in combating the transnational threats of the 21st century:
by rooting out the extremists who slaughter the innocent, and stopping the
piracy that threatens our sea lanes; by enhancing our efforts to stop infectious
disease, and working to end extreme poverty in our time; and by shutting down
the traffickers who exploit women, children and migrants, and putting a stop to
this scourge of modern-day slavery once and for all.

Indeed, the final area in which we must work together is in upholding the
fundamental rights and dignity of all human beings.

The Asia Pacific region is rich with many cultures. It is marked by
extraordinary traditions and strong national histories. And time and again, we
have seen the remarkable talent and drive of the peoples of this region in
advancing human progress. Yet this much is also clear - indigenous cultures and
economic growth have not been stymied by respect for human rights, they have
been strengthened by it. Supporting human rights provides lasting security that
cannot be purchased in any other way - that is the story that can be seen in
Japan's democracy, just as it can be seen in America's.

The longing for liberty and dignity is a part of the story of all peoples. For
there are certain aspirations that human beings hold in common: the freedom to
speak your mind, and choose your leaders; the ability to access information, and
worship how you please; confidence in the rule of law, and the equal
administration of justice. These are not impediments to stability, they are its
cornerstones. And we will always stand on the side of those who seek these
rights.

That truth guides our new approach to Burma. Despite years of good intentions,
neither sanctions by the United States nor engagement by others succeeded in
improving the lives of the Burmese people. So we are now communicating directly
with the leadership to make it clear that existing sanctions will remain until
there are concrete steps toward democratic reform. We support a Burma that is
unified, peaceful, prosperous, and democratic. And as Burma moves in that
direction, a better relationship with the United States is possible.

There are clear steps that must be taken - the unconditional release of all
political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi; an end to conflicts with
minority groups; and a genuine dialogue between the government, the democratic
opposition and minority groups on a shared vision for the future. That is how a
government in Burma will be able to respond to the needs of its people. That is
the path that will bring Burma true security and prosperity.

These are the steps that the United States will take to improve prosperity,
security, and human dignity in the Asia Pacific. We will do so through our close
friendship with Japan - which will always be a centrepiece of our efforts in the
region. We will do so as a partner - through the broader engagement that I have
discussed today. We will do so as a Pacific nation - with a President who was
shaped in part by this piece of the globe. And we will do so with the same sense
of purpose that has guided our ties with the Japanese people for nearly fifty
years.

The story of how these ties were forged dates back to the middle of the last
century, some time after the guns of war had quieted in the Pacific. It was then
that America's commitment to the security and stability of Japan, along with the
Japanese peoples' spirit of resilience and industriousness, led to what has been
called the Japanese Miracle - a period of economic growth that was faster and
more robust than anything the world had seen for some time.

In the coming years and decades, this Miracle would spread throughout the
region, and in a single generation, the lives and fortunes of millions were
forever changed for the better. It is progress that has been supported by a
hard-earned peace, and strengthened by new bridges of mutual understanding that
have bound together the nations of this vast and sprawling space.

But we know that there is still work to be done - so that new breakthroughs in
science and technology can lead to jobs on both sides of the Pacific, and
security from a warming planet; so that we reverse the spread of deadly weapons,
and - on a divided peninsula - the people of the South can be freed from fear,
while those in the north can live free from want; so that a young girl van be
valued not for her body but for her mind, and so that young people everywhere
can go as far as their talent, their drive, and their choices will take them.

None of this will come easy, nor without setback or struggle. But at this moment
of renewal - in this land of miracles - history tells us it is possible. This is
America's agenda. This is the purpose of our partnership - with Japan, and with
the nations and peoples of this region. And there must be no doubt: as America's
first Pacific President, I promise you that this Pacific nation will strengthen
and sustain our leadership in this vitally important part of the world. Thank
you very much.


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