(Provisional Translation)

Opening Statement by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at the Press Conference on the Kananaskis Summit

June 27, 2002

At the Summit this time we were able to engage in discussions on various urgent matters facing the international community, and by going back to our starting point at Rambouillet, we were able to engage in discussions very freely and from broad perspectives amongst the G8 leaders. I believe this Summit was indeed fruitful. We also reached an agreement that in 2006, the Russian Federation will host the Summit as the G8 Presidency and I believe this was indeed a historic decision for the future of the G8. At the Summit this time, I believe that, by expressing our views and our approach on the world economy, including development issues, counter-terrorism and regional issues, as well as African issues, we were able to achieve the following results. First of all with regard to the world economy, I explained with regard to Japan's economic management that, based on the conviction, which remains very firm, that there will be no growth without reform, we have been working on economic revitalization, regulatory reform and tax reform. We shall stay the course of reform and we have already reached the point of no return with regard to our reforms. I believe this has been appreciated highly and warmly by the leaders of the other G8 countries. With regard to counter-terrorism, in order to eradicate international terrorism, the G8 countries need, together with a sense of tension, to continue to strengthen our endeavors against terrorism in a coordinated manner. I believe that from this vantage point, we decided to launch the G8 Global Partnership against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. We believe that this is indeed an important challenge for the international community as a whole. I said that Japan shall make its contributions in this regard as well. As for development, I mentioned that education has been very important in making Japan as prosperous as it is today. Based on the view that human resource development is the foundation of any nation-building, we shall attach importance to cooperation with developing countries in the areas of education and health. In relation to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), or the Johannesburg Summit, I pointed out the importance of engaging in concrete action to achieve both environmental preservation and development. I stated that Japan is attaching importance to this as a priority matter. With regard to the Johannesburg Summit, as President Thabo Mvuyelwa Mmbeki of the Republic of South Africa will be chairing the meeting, I expressed my support for his chairmanship of the meeting. In the days ahead, Japan shall emphasize its efforts to create the right climate to cooperate with President Mmbeki, and I called on the other leaders of the G8 countries to do likewise. As for the Kyoto Protocol, Japan concluded this document on 4 June, and I pointed out the importance of aiming at an expeditious entry into force of this document. I also stated that I welcome the Final Report on the G8 Action Program on Forests, which covers measures against illegal logging. In the area of Africa, we, the G8, adopted the G8 Africa Action Plan, which responds to the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), which is an expression of the ownership of African countries. In the meeting with African leaders and Secretary-General Kofi Annan of the United Nations, I expressed our view that, as the Koizumi Administration, we shall continue to stick to our principle that there will be no world stability and prosperity without the resolution of African problems, and Japan shall continue to keep up and extend our efforts in cooperation with African countries. Next year, we shall be holding the Third Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD III), a conference that has been held every five years. We have already had the first and second meetings, and next year the third meeting will take place in Tokyo. I called on the African representatives for their participation, as well as their cooperation, for that conference. With regard to the products of all least developing countries (LDCs), Japan is working on duty-free and quota-free treatment, and also we announced a program for prioritizing ODA for African countries in the area of education. I expressed these views when I invited African Ambassadors to a meeting and I explained during the meeting that we shall continue with those endeavors. On regional situations, we had lively discussions, mainly on the Middle East situation, Afghanistan and the India-Pakistan situation. On the Middle East, we shared the recognition with regard to the need for us to address Palestine reform and the security issue seriously. I also stated that Japan shall continue to play an active role in the areas of Afghanistan and in the Middle East peace. I also specifically referred to the North Korea problem. Whilst we are encumbered with difficult issues, such as the abduction issues, in our relations with North Korea, we shall continue to address seriously our normalization talks with North Korea in the days ahead as well. At the Summit meeting, where we had lots of discussions on numerous international issues, in addition to that, on the wings of the Summit, I also had a useful exchange of views in my meetings with Prime Minister Jean Chretien, President George W. Bush, Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Vladimir Putin. I was most gratified on behalf of Japan, on behalf all of the countries that were involved in my bilateral meetings, that we were able to have such candid exchanges of views. Before concluding my Opening Statement, let me say that Kananaskis is a beautiful place. Its vast expanse is beyond imagination in Japan. Of course, we were holed up for two days of discussions in Kananaskis, but during those two days, thanks to the outstanding chairmanship of Prime Minister Jean Chretien, we were able to have this fruitful Summit. I would like to express my deep respect for achieving that and also express my gratitude for the warm welcome. These are my candid impressions, which I have gained from the Summit meetings. Japan shall, as a member of the G8, continue to make contributions befitting its national strength.