Japan should be admitted into the so-called Quartet of nations and organizations sponsoring the stalled Mideast peace process, the Palestinian foreign minister said Thursday.
Nabil Shaath, who is in Tokyo for talks with Japanese officials, said he appreciated Japan's financial contributions to the Palestinians over the years, but felt it was time for Tokyo to take a larger role in resolving the conflict.
"Japan has the trust of all Palestinians and also, I think, the Israelis," Shaath told reporters. "We think it's unfair to ask Japan just to pay the bill without being part of the decision-making."
Shaath suggested that Japanese monitors could be posted in Palestinian territories as a means of contributing.
The Quartet is made up of the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations. The group is sponsoring the so-called "road map" peace plan, which calls for a series of steps leading to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Shaath was joined by Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayad. The Palestinian delegation met with Foreign Ministry officials Thursday, and a meeting with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was scheduled for Friday.
The Palestinians are also looking for more financial help from the Japanese. Japan has contributed $650 million to the Palestinians over the past decade, though annual donations have dropped in recent years, Shaath said.
The Palestinian Authority has run into trouble wooing donor nations in recent months amid continued allegations of corruption.
In a recent case, French prosecutors launched a money-laundering probe into alleged transfers of millions of dollars to accounts held by the wife of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
