Daisuke has signed. The best part was reading this official State Department transcript, which starts off as you might expect, talking about the Six-Party Talks on North Korea, before going into a Matsuzaka sidetrack:
QUESTION: After the nuclear test blast, there were said to be indications of possible preparations for an additional nuclear test. Can it now be said, as you’re entering the talks, that those preparations, or indications thereof, to be more accurate, have ceased? Has their tempo changed? Can you say –
ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: You know, again, you’re asking me about test preparations that our analysis of which is done by the intelligence community evaluating various national technical means, and I just can’t get into any discussion of that. What I can tell you obviously is that any testing of any, you know, launching of missiles or anything like that would, of course, do some very severe damage to this diplomatic process.
Yes.
QUESTION: Chris, on the Matsuzaka issue, not confirmed but it does appear that a deal has been struck; Matsuzaka stepped in and made the deal happen.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: He stepped in.
QUESTION: It appears.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: And was John Henry there as well?
QUESTION: Larry Luchino [sic] and Epstein and Boras and Matsuzaka.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: This is a terrific Christmas present. Thank you very much.
(Laughter.)
QUESTION: Not confirmed.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: I don’t mind going to Beijing for Christmas now. This is great. Okay.
I guess you could call Henry, Lucchino, Theo, Boras, and Matsuzaka the Five-Party Talks. And I guess Lucky Lucchino got his name spelt wrong in one of his only chances at being in a State transcript.