Arab- Japanese dialogue forum opened in Doha, marking al-Jazeera TV inauguration of Tokyo's office

The Arab-Japanese dialogue forum which is organized by al- Jazeera TV in collaboration with Japan was held in Doha on the occasion of inaugurating al-Jazeera office in Tokyo. The forum aims at getting the Arab media onto the perspective of the Far East and getting closer to it.

The forum was attended by Japanese officials and pressmen in the non- governmental organizations and the dialogue dealt with agreement between the Japanese and Arab culture. It also dealt with reasons behind sending Japanese forces to Iraq and the impact of that on Arab- Japanese relations.

The spokesman for the Japanese foreign ministry expressed his country s happiness to have al-Jazeera opening its office in Tokyo, stressing the need of maintaining understanding between the Arabs and the Japanese. He said in a statement to al-Jazeera TV that the channel contributes to expanding this dialogue.

As for the situation in Iraq, the Japanese spokesman said that the question of the Japanese hostages was a warning element for the Japanese people to understand what is taking place and they now know what is taking place in al-Falujja,, al-Najaf and the other Iraqi cities.

He explained that the Japanese people understand now that the Japanese aid is very important for the Iraqis, and they are demanding a greater role for the UN in humanitarian fields in Iraq.

As for trade relations between Qatar and Japan, the Japanese spokesman said that these relations are continuously increasing, noting that Japan gives 10% of Qatar's consumers needs and imports huge amounts of the Qatari gas, besides there are direct contacts between Doha and Tokyo