Japanese opposition party leaders are blaming Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi for being "bullied" by the United States into initially reopening the market to U.S. beef. Koizumi defended his actions before the Diet, Japan's Senate, on Tuesday.
Leader of the opposition Democratic Party Seiji Maehara says "[Koizumi] gave precedence to Japan-U.S. relations over the Japanese people's lives and safety," according to a report in Meatingplace.com.
Shoichi Nakagawa, Minister of Agriculture, told U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns another mistake may mean a permanent ban on U.S. beef.
Governments of the two countries this week are holding talks on lifting the ban, but it could take a great deal of assurance to win back Japanese consumers.
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