INDEPENDENT NEWS

Cablegate: Country Clearance for a/S Hill, Eap Special

Published: Thu 1 Nov 2007 04:44 AM
VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB
DE RUEHKO #5066/01 3050444
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 010444Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9109
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 9855
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL PRIORITY 5913
UNCLAS TOKYO 005066
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OTRA PREL JA
SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR A/S HILL, EAP SPECIAL
ASSISTANT KLEIN AND NSC EAST ASIA DIRECTOR PAUL HAENLE
REF: STATE 151068
1. (U) Embassy welcomes and grants country clearance for the
November 2-3, 2007 visit to Japan by A/S Christopher R. Hill,
EAP Special Assistant Christopher Klein, and NSC East Asian
Director Paul Haenle.
2. (U) Control Officer for the visit will be Political
Officer Scott Hansen. He can be reached at:
Office phone: (81-3)3224-5559
Home phone: (81-3)3224-6858
Mobile phone: 81-08-1020-2000
Fax: (81-3)3224-5322
E-mail: HansenSW@state.gov (unclassified)
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Hotel Reservations
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3. (U) Tokyo hotel reservations have been made at the Hotel
Okura 2-10-4 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-8416, Tel:
(81-3) 3582-0111 Fax: (81-3) 3582-3707. Details as follows:
Christopher Hill
Arrive: Nov 2, 2007
Depart: Nov 3, 2007
Conf. No.: 634719
Christopher Klein
Arrive: Nov 2, 2007
Depart: Nov 3, 2007
Conf. No.: 634720
Paul Haenle
Arrive: Nov 2, 2007
Depart: Nov 3, 2007
Conf. No.: K00048654
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Airport to Hotel Transportation
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4. (U) Control Officer will meet and assist at the airport.
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Visa
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5. (U) Holders of U.S. diplomatic or official passports must
have a Japanese visa to enter Japan. Travelers on a U.S.
tourist passport may enter Japan as a tourist without a
Japanese visa for up to 90 days. As of November 20, 2007,
all foreign nationals entering Japan, with the exemption of
certain categories, are required to provide fingerprints and
a facial photograph at the port of entry. This requirement
does not replace any existing visa or passport requirements.
Official U.S. travelers will have to submit to the photograph
and fingerprinting requirement unless they travel with a
valid diplomatic or official visa or a Note Verbale. The
nature of the passport onto which the visa is pasted is not
relevant, i.e. a tourist passport holder with a diplomatic or
official visa will not have to submit to the biometrics
collection process. SOFA personnel are exempt under SOFA
Article 9 (2) from the new biometrics entry requirements.
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Embassy Laptop Policy
----------------------
6. (U) Official visitors are reminded that personally owned
or non-controlled USG-issued electronic equipment (including
all PDAs, cell phones, pagers, radios, records) may not enter
the controlled access areas. Additionally, all classified
and sensitive materials must be secured at the embassy visit
control office upon arrival in country.
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Threat Assessment
-----------------
7. (U) U.S. Government facilities worldwide remain at a
heightened state of alert. As the U.S. Government has
reported in public announcements over the last several
months, U.S. citizens and interests abroad may be at
increased risk of terrorist actions from extremist groups,
which may target civilians and include suicide operations.
The Department maintains information about potential threats
to Americans overseas which is available to travelers on the
internet at the Bureau of Consular Affairs home page:
http://www.travel.state.gov. The Embassy takes all threats
seriously. U.S. Embassy Tokyo can be contacted 24 hours a
day at 03-3224-5000 (locally) or 81-3-3224-5000
(internationally).
8. (SBU) The general threat from crime in Tokyo and
throughout Japan is low. Crime is at levels well below the
U.S. national average. Violent crime is rare, but does
exist. The Japanese National Police report continued
problems with pick-pocketing of foreigners in crowded
shopping areas of Tokyo. Although street crime is low,
common sense security measures are advised for all American
citizens traveling in Japan.
9. (U) Also be advised that under no circumstances may
weapons be brought into Japan. Carrying a pocketknife
(including Swiss Army-style knife, craft or hunting knife,
box cutter, etc.) in public is forbidden. Under Japanese
law, carrying any such item in public, with a size exceeding
8 cm in length, 1.5 cm in width or 2 mm in thickness, can
subject the person to arrest or detention.
SCHIEFFER
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