Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. It is my pleasure to give you a couple of announcements this afternoon. My first announcement is on the recent parliamentary election in Montenegro. The Government of Japan welcomes the fact that the parliamentary election in Montenegro, in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, took place on 22 April calmly and essentially, in a fair manner.
Japan supports a democratic Montenegro within a democratic Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Moreover, Japan expects Montenegro, the Republic of Serbia, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to initiate serious dialogue on their future relations, based on the principles of democracy and their existing constitutions, without harming stability in the region. My second announcement is with regard to the incident that occurred in Istanbul, Turkey. The Government of Japan welcomes the peaceful outcome of the incident in Istanbul, with the release of all the hostages that were being held, including some Japanese citizens. Since the incident took place, Japan had asked the Government of Turkey to resolve the situation with top priority on the safety of the hostages. On the basis of the efforts undertaken by the Turkish side, we were able to see a peaceful solution to the incident.