Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet  
What's up around the Prime Minister TOP
The Prime Minister Visits China


Friday, August 8, 2008



Photograph of the Prime Minister encouraging the athletes Photograph of the Prime Minister encouraging the athletes Photograph of Prime Minister Fukuda holding talks with Premier Wen Jiabao
Photograph of the Prime Minister encouraging the athletes Photograph of Prime Minister Fukuda holding talks with President Hu Jintao

Click photographs to enlarge


Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, together with Mrs. Kiyoko Fukuda, visited Beijing, the capital of the People's Republic of China, to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Games of the XXIX Olympiad.

Upon arrival, Prime Minister Fukuda attended a welcome ceremony at the People's Congress Hall hosted by Mr. Hu Jintao, President of China, and his wife, Mrs. Liu Yongqing. Also invited were other prominent visitors, including Mr. George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush, President and First Lady of the United States of America, Mr. Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, and Mr. Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the French Republic. Afterwards, Prime Minister Fukuda visited the Olympic village and encouraged the Japanese national team.

In the evening, Prime Minister Fukuda held talks separately with Premier Wen and President Hu. At the meetings, the Prime Minister congratulated the opening of the Olympic Games on behalf of the Government and the people of Japan, and expressed his respect for the enthusiasm of the Government and the people of China in hosting the event despite the hardship posed by the Great Earthquake in Sichuan Province. Prime Minister Fukuda also spoke about Tokyo's bid to host the 2016 Olympics and his support for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.

On Japan-China relations, the two countries confirmed to continue stepping up a mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests. At the same time, on the pending issue concerning the incident of toxic substances being mixed in with frozen dumplings, Prime Minister Fukuda pointed to the need of further intensifying bilateral cooperation so as to clarify what actually happened, including whether or not there is any link between the poisoning incident in China and those that took place in Japan. He also pointed to the importance of information disclosure.

On the North Korean abduction issue, Prime Minister Fukuda expressed his expectation for China to demonstrate leadership in the Six Party Talks so that a verification framework will be agreed and put into effect on the earliest date, as well as to make an approach on Japan-North Korea relations.

In the late evening, Prime Minister Fukuda attended the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games held at the National Stadium (also known as the "Bird's Nest"), and cheered the Japanese national team during the entry parade from the spectator stand. Having completed his full itinerary, the Prime Minister returned to Japan in the early morning of August 9.