Japan-Angola Summit Meeting and Working Dinner (Summary)

On March 13, commencing at 6:10 p.m., for approximately 50 minutes, Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio held a Japan-Angola Summit Meeting with H.E. Mr. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, who is on an official working visit to Japan. Following the joint press announcement, the two leaders held a working dinner from 7:20 p.m., approximately for 60 minutes. The overview of the meeting and the working dinner is as follows.

1. Introduction

Prime Minister Kishida stated that Japan is placing importance on cooperation with Angola, which is contributing to regional stability, in order to maintain and strengthen the international order based on the rule of law. He also stated that as we marked the 30th anniversary of TICAD this year, we will steadily implement the results of TICAD 8 in coordination with President Lourenço, who was reelected after the democratic election.

In response, President Lourenço expressed his gratitude for the hospitality of Japan for his visit, and stated that TICAD is an important process that contributes to Angola's development and that he would like to further strengthen Japan-Angola relations through the follow-up of TICAD.

2. Bilateral cooperation

(1) Strengthening business relationships

Prime Minister Kishida stated that Angola is a country with high economic potential, with one of the highest oil production and rich mineral resources in Africa, and that Japan will support the fiscal and financial reforms and the economic reforms that President Lourenço is promoting, and will also encourage investment in Angola by Japanese companies from the perspective of energy and economic security. In response, President Lourenço expressed his expectations for the promotion of private investment in various areas.

The two leaders confirmed that they will strengthen cooperation through concrete initiatives of the port development (approximately 70 billion yen) in southern Angola and that they will work even more closely in order to carry out the "Project for Transmission System Reinforcement in Southern Angola", a candidate project for yen loans, within this year. In addition, through the Japan-Angola Business Forum held prior to the summit meeting, the two governments confirmed concrete cooperation in the business field, and in order to encourage this trend, the government of Angola and the government of Japan welcomed the agreement in principle of the bilateral investment agreement, and also agreed to further promote concrete cooperation in the areas of telecommunication and space.

(2) Promoting development cooperation

Prime Minister Kishida stated that Japan places great importance on "investment in people" and will develop human resources to support Angola's future in a wide range of fields, including agriculture, renewable energy, mineral resources, and health. He also expressed his commitment to contribute to Angola's efforts to eliminate landmines through the provision of landmine clearance attachments. In response, President Lourenço expressed his gratitude for Japan's support to date and his expectations for cooperation in areas such as infrastructure and finance.

3. Cooperation in the international arena

Prime Minister Kishida stated that Russia's aggression against Ukraine is an outrageous action that shakes the foundations of the international order, and reiterated that if the basic principles of the international order are ignored, a situation may arise in which a major power will swallow a minor power. In response, President Lourenço, stated that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is unacceptable and expressed concern over the situation that the global food and fuel prices are surging. In addition, the two leaders shared the view that they absolutely cannot accept Russia’s nuclear threats, let alone its use of nuclear weapons, and confirmed the importance of the international community responding in a unified manner.

The two leaders also affirmed the importance of transparent and fair development finance, and confirmed that both countries will work together on this matter. They also discussed the situation in East Asia, including the response to North Korea, the situation in the African region, and strengthening the functions of the United Nations, including Security Council reform, and agreed that both countries will cooperate closely.