[05/March/2010]

Tokyo, March 05 (Saba) - Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada met here on Friday with visiting U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg to discuss how to coordinate efforts to deal with the Iranian and North Korean nuclear standoffs, according to Qatar News Agency (QNA).

The thorny issue of where to relocate a U.S. Marine base in Okinawa is also expected to be touched on, with sources close to bilateral ties saying Tokyo has told Washington that it will not go through with a relocation plan the two countries agreed on in 2006.

Steinberg arrived in Japan on Thursday following a three-day visit to China to try to mend ties soured recently by U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, Japanese news agency (Kyodo) reported.

The United States is also believed to have sought China's backing for fresh sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program. China has been reluctant to support the move.
Japan is likely to take concerted action with the United States over the Iranian issue.

In February, Okada told Iran's parliament speaker Ali Larijani during his visit to Japan that, if a resolution against Iran is adopted at the U.N. Security Council, Japan has to comply with it.

Saba