Economic assistance is another important action to assure long-term global stability and prosperity. We are encouraging recipient nations which are making efforts to move toward more democratic government, introduce market economies, control military spending, and promote policies to control or dispose of weapons of mass destruction. Japan's ODA decisions are being strongly influenced by countries which follow such policies. Two years ago, Japan pledged more than 7 million dollars in ODA funds to support environmental protection programs around the world. Since then, Japanese aid is helping to restore forest lands in Mexico and Indonesia, supporting the treatment of solid waste in Brazil, and supporting research to deal with acid rain in China.
Environmental protection is also one of the key global issues in the Framework Talks.
I want to see ever closer cooperation between our nations in this vital area. I understand that the U. S. government will provide 9 billion dollars to deal with these problems during the same period. We also want to strengthen international cooperation to fight the threat of drugs, and to find a cure for cancer. In the recent APEC leaders' meeting in Seattle, President Clinton spoke with conviction about the importance of the Asia-Pacific in America's future. He made some of same points in a speech during his visit to Tokyo last year.