Washington signals deal over army deserter

The United States might delay a request for Japan to hand over an accused army deserter, the American ambassador said today, clearing the way for the former sergeant to visit Tokyo for medical treatment.

The remarks by US Ambassador Howard Baker, made after his meeting with Japan’s foreign minister Yoriko Kawaguchi earlier, were the first sign of a tentative accord between Washington and Tokyo over the fate of Charles Jenkins, who allegedly defected to North Korea four decades ago.

“Foreign minister Kawaguchi told me that Sgt Jenkins’ medical condition is serious and asked that the United States consider the humanitarian aspects of this case,” Baker said in a statement.

“I acknowledged to foreign minister Kawaguchi that the US government is sympathetic to his health condition and that Sgt Jenkins’ medical condition may delay our request for his transfer to US custody.”

Jenkins, 64, will be whisked to a Tokyo university hospital as soon as he arrives from Indonesia tomorrow with his Japanese wife and their two North Korean-born daughters.

Jenkins, who disappeared while on patrol in 1965 and who later read anti-US propaganda broadcasts and appeared in Communist Party films, is wanted in the United States on four charges, including desertion. He could face life in prison if convicted. US officials had previously said the administration would seek custody of Jenkins, despite Tokyo’s efforts to win clemency for him.

For the past week, Jenkins, his wife Hitomi Soga and their children have been in a Jakarta hotel following an emotional reunion. Soga, a Japanese woman who was abducted by North Korean spies in 1978, had been allowed to return to Japan two years ago, but left her family behind in the North.

The family would be sheltered from the media once they were in Tokyo, the Cabinet Office spokesman said.

Baker said US embassy officials had no plans to meet Jenkins “in the immediate future”.