Courtesy Call from GCC Secretary General Jasem Al Budaiwi (Summary)
July 16, 2023
[Provisional translation]
On July 16, commencing at 4:15 p.m. local time (10:15 p.m. JST) for approximately 35 minutes, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, who is visiting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, received a courtesy call from His Excellency Jasem Al Budaiwi, Secretary General, Gulf Cooperation Council, in Jeddah. The overview of the meeting is as follows. Both sides also issued a "Joint Statement" based on their concurrence on to resume negotiations for a Japan-GCC Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
- At the beginning of the meeting, Prime Minister Kishida expressed his appreciation for the GCC's role in addressing various issues for the development and prosperity of the Gulf region and stated that he would like to support the GCC countries in their efforts to diversify their industries and socio-economic reforms to become more decarbonized. In response, Secretary-General Budaiwi welcomed Prime Minister Kishida's visit to Jeddah and expressed his desire to further strengthen cooperation between Japan and the GCC in this opportunity of Prime Minister Kishida's visit to GCC countries.
- Prime Minister Kishida stated that bilateral cooperation between Japan and the GCC countries has been steadily progressing and that he would like to make the "Japan-GCC Foreign Ministers' Meeting" a regular event in order to further strengthen the relationship. Both sides concurred on regularizing the Minister’s Meeting.
- Both sides also coincided to resume negotiations for a Japan-GCC Free Trade Agreement (FTA) from 2024, which have been suspended since 2009, as a legal basis for promoting trade and investment, and to begin preliminary discussions toward this end, given the fact that the economic ties between Japan and the GCC countries are being vitalized to an unprecedented level.
- Prime Minister Kishida expressed his desire to further strengthen the longstanding friendship between Japan and the GCC in cooperation with Secretary-General Budaiwi, to which both parties confirmed that they would continue to develop cooperation.
