Japan – Cook Islands Summit Meeting (Working Lunch) (Summary)

[Provisional translation]

On July 17, commencing at 12:00 pm for approximately 65 minutes, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, held a working lunch with Hon. Mr. Mark Brown，Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, who is visiting Japan to participate in the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM10). The overview of the meeting is as follows:

1. Prime Minister Kishida stated that at PALM 10, with the cooperation of Prime Minister Brown, the co-chair of PALM10, he wishes to further strengthen the “kizuna” between Japan and the Pacific Island countries, to discuss cooperation aligned with the “2050 Strategy for Blue Pacific Continent,” and to make the meeting an opportunity to communicate domestically as well as internationally the direction that Japan and the Pacific Island countries are taking together.
2. Prime Minister Kishida welcomed the relationship between Japan and the Cook Islands　becoming more solid than ever, through exchanges between the two leaders since last year, and expressed his desire to further develop the bilateral relations. He conveyed Japan's intention to continue working with the Cook Islands as a good partner, building on to the outcome of the past cooperation and focusing on priorities such as infrastructural resilience and climate change adaptation. In addition, he conveyed the decision to provide agricultural equipment, including farm tractors, to the Cook Islands.
3. Prime Minister Brown, as co-chair, expressed his hope for successful PALM 10, and his gratitude to the Government and people of Japan for Japan’s cooperation, and stated that he looked forward to enhanced cooperation between the two countries.
4. Regarding the discharge of ALPS treated water into the sea, Prime Minister Kishida explained that Japan would continue its efforts to ensure safety, and Prime Minister Brown expressed his warm welcome.
5. Both leaders also exchanged views on various regional issues.