Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka may visit San Francisco on Sept. 8 to attend a series of ceremonies to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the San Francisco Peace Treaty that officially ended Japan's war with the United States and other countries, a senior Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday.
At the initiative of former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz, a U.S. group is planning a symposium and other events called SF50 in San Francisco, with Secretary of State Colin Powell also likely to attend, the official said.
"We are now adjusting the foreign minister's schedule to see whether the visit is possible," the official said.
Tanaka and Powell, who have already met in Washington, in Rome at the Group of Eight ministerial meeting and in Hanoi at the regional security talks, will have talks again in San Francisco if both attend.
The event is aimed at reaffirming the friendship between the two countries and strengthening bilateral ties.