Japan-Brunei Summit-level Working Lunch (Summary)

On December 16, commencing at 12:30 p.m. for approximately an hour, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, held a Japan-Brunei Summit-Level Working Lunch with His Majesty Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzaddin Waddaulah, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, who is visiting Japan to participate in the Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation. The overview of the working lunch is as follows.
 
The working lunch was also attended on the Japanese side by MURAI Hideki, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, among others; and on the Brunei side by His Royal Highness Prince Abdul Mateen of Brunei, The Hon. Dato Haji Erywan Pehin Yusof, Minister of Foreign Affairs II, The Hon. Dato Dr. Haji Amin Liew Abdullah, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II, among others.
 
After this meeting, the two leaders issued a Joint Press Statement by Japan and Brunei Darussalam on the Occasion of the Visit of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzaddin Waddaulah, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam to Japan.
 
1. Introduction
Prime Minister Kishida expressed his gratitude for His Majesty Sultan Bolkiah’s visit to Japan, and expressed his respect to His Majesty Sultan Bolkiah’s longstanding contribution to the steady development of Japan-Brunei relations underpinned by exchanges between the Imperial Family and the Royal Family of Brunei. Prime Minister Kishida also stated that, as the world is at a historical turning point, Japan places great importance on promoting cooperation with ASEAN, including Brunei, to maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law and to ensure a world where human dignity is protected. Prime Minister Kishida expressed his hope that the Commemorative Summit would become an opportunity to pass on to the next generation the "trust" which Japan and ASEAN have built thus far, and to further strengthen the relations between Japan and ASEAN. In response, His Majesty Sultan Bolkiah appreciated that he was welcomed by the Japanese side on his visit, and expressed his hope to work with Prime Minister Kishida to further develop the relations between Japan and Brunei, while celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year.
 
2. Bilateral Relations
Prime Minister Kishida expressed his gratitude for Brunei’s longstanding stable supply of LNG to Japan and expressed his desire to further strengthen cooperation in the energy sector, including by enhancing cooperation in energy transition and decarbonization through the Asian Zero Emission Community (AZEC) Leaders’ Meeting as well as by supporting the development of a national energy plan based on the Memorandum of Cooperation on the Realization of Energy Transition signed between the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and the Prime Minister’s Office of Brunei Darussalam. In response, His Majesty Sultan Bolkiah expressed his desire to promote cooperation with Japan in these areas.
 
The two leaders welcomed the fact that they concurred to extend the visa waiver period from 14 to 30 days for ordinary passport holders and expressed their hope that this would further facilitate people-to-people exchange between the two countries.
 
Prime Minister Kishida stated that it is important to maintain and strengthen a free and open maritime order and that he attaches importance to maritime security cooperation with Brunei, and His Majesty Sultan Bolkiah expressed his gratitude for Japan’s capacity building assistance and stated that he would like to continue to promote cooperation with Japan.
 
3. Responding to regional and international challenges
The two leaders also exchanged views on various regional and international issues, and confirmed that they would continue to work together.