Tuesday, May 5, 2009

3rd Day of the Prime Minister's Visit to Europe (Federal Republic of Germany)

On May 5 (local time), Prime Minister Taro Aso, who is visiting the Federal Republic of Germany, delivered a policy speech to people from the political and business circles of Germany at Humboldt-Universitat zu Berlin in Berlin. In the policy speech, Prime Minister Aso called on enhanced dialogue and cooperation between Japan and Europe, stating that the world was facing four major challenges: the financial and economic crisis; climate change; the fight against terrorism; and nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

In the afternoon, Prime Minister Aso, after attending a welcome ceremony at the Federal Chancellery of Germany, held talks with Dr. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany. The talks provided Japan and Germany, the largest economy in Asia and Europe, respectively, and which hold a major responsibility in the international community, with the opportunity to confirm their intention to further collaborate on important issues of the international community, such as the global financial and economic crisis and climate change.

On the global economic and financial crisis, the leaders shared the view that Japan and Germany would work together to steadily carry out agreements at the London Summit and to overcome the difficult situation.

The leaders were of the same recognition that the current generations should responsibly identify the way to resolve the climate change issue. Prime Minister Aso stressed two points to be achieved in order to reach an agreement on a fair and effective post-2012 framework at the fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP15): (i) the main carbon emitters with a substantial amount of carbon emissions also must bear obligations; and (ii) the developed countries, including Japan and Germany, must unite their efforts.

On the occurrence of pandemic influenza, which the international community is joining hands to respond to, the leaders, based on the understanding that international coordination is important, agreed that Japan and Germany too would cooperate to address the issue.

After the talks, the leaders held a joint Japan-Germany leaders' press conference.

Later, Prime Minister Aso paid a courtesy call on Mr. Horst Koehler, President of the Federal Republic of Germany. President Koehler, who expressed gratitude for Prime Minister Aso's visit to Germany and welcomed the Prime Minister's visit, asked how the Prime Minister, as the leader of the world's second largest economy, viewed the current global financial and economic crisis, and also how Japan responded to the crisis. Prime Minister Aso stated that he was grateful for the opportunity to pay a courtesy call on the President at such an important juncture when the presidential election was to be held in Germany at the end of the month. The Prime Minister introduced to the President the responses that Japan had made thus far, including the Countermeasures to Address the Economic Crisis with new fiscal outlays of 15 trillion yen. He also explained the necessity to maintain fiscal sustainability.

Completing the three-day visit to Europe, Prime Minister Aso left Germany for Japan in the evening.

Related Link

• 1st Day of the Prime Minister's Visit to Europe (Czech Republic) -What's up around the Prime Minister-
• 2nd Day of the Prime Minister's Visit to Europe (EU) -What's up around the Prime Minister-
• "A Japan-Europe Partnership to Surmount Global Challenges"
  Policy Speech by H.E. Mr. Taro Aso, Prime Minister of Japan on the Occasion of His Visit to Europe (May 5, 2009)
• Japan-Germany Relations (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)