IRANIAN PRESIDENT HASSAN ROUHANI SAID ON THE 21ST THAT JAPAN HAS PROPOSED A PLAN ON HOW TO "BREAK THROUGH" US SANCTIONS ON IRAN.ROUHANI ENDED HIS VISIT TO JAPAN ON THE SAME DAY. AFTER RETURNING TO IRAN, HE SAID, 'AS FOR BREAKING SANCTIONS, THE JAPANESE SIDE HAS MADE NEW PROPOSALS, AND WE ALSO HAVE NEW PROPOSALS. WE HAVE DISCUSSED THESE AND DECIDED TO CONTINUE NEGOTIATIONS ON THIS MATTER.' HE DID NOT DISCLOSE THE CONTENT OF THE PROPOSAL.AFTER MEETING WITH JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER SHINZO ABE ON THE 20TH, ROUHANI WROTE ON SOCIAL MEDIA "TWITTER": "I WELCOME ANY EFFORTS THAT HELP PROMOTE ECONOMIC EXCHANGES, ESPECIALLY IN THE ENERGY SECTOR, AS WELL AS OIL EXPORT GROWTHROUHANI IS THE FIRST IRANIAN PRESIDENT TO VISIT JAPAN SINCE 2000; ABE'S VISIT TO IRAN IN JUNE THIS YEAR IS THE FIRST VISIT BY A JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER TO IRAN IN 40 YEARS. JAPAN HAS BEEN A MAJOR IMPORTER OF IRANIAN CRUDE OIL FOR MANY YEARS, UNTIL THE US GOVERNMENT WITHDREW FROM THE COMPREHENSIVE AGREEMENT ON THE IRANIAN NUCLEAR ISSUE LAST YEAR AND RESTORED SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAN. JAPANESE MEDIA REPORTED THAT ABE ATTEMPTED TO HELP EASE US IRAN RELATIONS BY LEVERAGING JAPAN'S GOOD RELATIONS WITH THE US AND IRAN.ABE AND ROUHANI MET ON THE 20TH TO SEEK IRAN'S UNDERSTANDING ON JAPAN'S PLAN TO DISPATCH A MARITIME SELF DEFENSE FORCE TO THE MIDDLE EAST WATERS. ON THE 21ST, ROUHANI SAID, "JAPAN ANNOUNCED THAT IT WILL NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE US SECURITY PLAN IN THIS REGION... WE WELCOME ITAFTER THE UNITED STATES WITHDREW FROM THE IRAN NUCLEAR AGREEMENT, IT RALLIED ALLIES AND OTHER COUNTRIES TO FORM AN "ESCORT ALLIANCE" IN THE GULF REGION TO TARGET IRAN. THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT HAS NOT PARTICIPATED IN THIS ALLIANCE AND WILL DEPLOY A DESTROYER AND A PATROL AIRCRAFT IN THE GULF OF OMAN, ARABIAN SEA, AND GULF OF ADEN, BUT NOT NEAR THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ NEAR IRAN.ACCORDING TO A PREVIOUS REPORT BY KYODO NEWS, THE US SIDE HAD PREVIOUSLY INFORMED THE JAPANESE SIDE THAT IT AGREED TO ROUHANI'S VISIT TO JAPAN AND REQUESTED THAT THE JAPANESE SIDE INFORM THEM OF THE CONTENT OF THE MEETING BETWEEN ABE AND ROUHANI.ABE HAD A REGULAR PHONE CALL WITH US PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP ON THE EVENING OF THE 21ST, LASTING APPROXIMATELY 1 HOUR AND 15 MINUTES. ABE TOLD MEDIA REPORTERS THAT HE DISCUSSED THE SITUATION ON THE KOREAN PENINSULA WITH TRUMP. ACCORDING TO KYODO NEWS, ABE ALSO INTRODUCED THE CONTENT OF HIS MEETING WITH ROUHANI TO TRUMP, SAYING THAT JAPAN WILL MAINTAIN CLOSE COOPERATION WITH THE UNITED STATES AND CONTINUE TO EASE TENSIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST THROUGH DIPLOMATIC MEANS.