At the invitation of the Government of Japan, His Excellency Ollanta Humala, President of the Republic of Peru, and his spouse paid an Official Working Visit to Japan from May 8 to 10, 2012. During their visit, they paid a courtesy call on Their Imperial Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan and participated in a luncheon with them. Mr. Humala then held a meeting with Mr. Yoshihiko Noda, Prime Minister of Japan, during which they discussed the main areas of interest in the bilateral relations between the two countries and the principles and values that underpin the Peru-Japan partnership.

Both leaders reaffirmed their decision to strengthen the political dialogue between the two Governments and to improve bilateral economic relations by means of facilitating business and investment, as well as through cooperation in various areas of mutual interest. They also decided to enhance their coordination in multilateral fora.

In this regard:

a) Both leaders expressed their satisfaction with the wide scope and long timescale of their countries' friendly bilateral relations. Peru became the first country in South America to receive organized Japanese immigrants in 1899 and now houses the second-largest community of Japanese descendants in that region. Furthermore, Peruvian descendants constitute the second-largest community of Latin Americans in Japan. The two leaders also acknowledged the positive contribution of their respective communities in each country.

b) Both leaders recalled the mutual provision of relief for the Pisco-Peru earthquake (2007) and the Great East Japan Earthquake (2011) respectively. The Prime Minister of Japan expressed his determination to pursue the reconstruction process in a vigorous and efficient manner and, in this regard, appreciated Peru's decision to lift all restrictions on food imports from Japan.

c) Both leaders underlined the importance of the recently enforced Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between their countries that will enables trade, investment and new business opportunities to contribute to achieving inclusive growth.

d) The President of Peru welcomed Japan's interest in participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, and expressed his support for Japan.

e) Both leaders expressed their satisfaction with the results of the Tenth Meeting of the Peru-Japan Business Committee (CEPEJA), which was held today in Tokyo.

f) Both leaders expressed their satisfaction with the excellent level of political dialogue and declared their intention of further strengthening their contacts at various levels.

g) The President of Peru appreciated the valuable contribution of the Official Development Assistance provided by the Government of Japan, in all its forms. The Prime Minister of Japan announced that Japan would take the necessary steps to extend yen loans for four new projects, namely, the "Energy Renovation Infrastructure Assistance Program", the "North Lima Metropolitan Area Water Supply and Sewerage Optimization Project (II)", the "Solid Waste Management Project" and the "Amazonas Rural Development Project". The Prime Minister of Japan also noted the decision made by the Government of Japan to implement a grant project, "Improvement of Equipment for Disaster Risk Management". The President of Peru appreciated the above-mentioned announcement.

h) The President of Peru expressed his desire to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Japan in the areas of renewable energy, eco-efficiency and clean technologies, for the purpose of progressively reducing his country's dependence on fossil fuels.

i) The President of Peru expressed his intention of working towards increasing the number of Peruvian graduate and post-graduate students at universities in Japan.

j) Both leaders recognized that the continuous scientific cooperation in archaeology between Peruvian and Japanese scholars for over half a century has been an outstanding achievement in terms of bilateral understanding and mutual respect for each other's culture and peoples.

k) Both leaders emphasized the steady progress achieved by Peruvian and Japanese universities regarding education and academic exchange.

l) Both leaders expressed their interest in continuously collaborating in the field of Digital Terrestrial Broadcasting Services with "Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting Terrestrial (ISDB-T)".

m) Both leaders emphasized the importance that they placed on the stable supply of natural resources, which will benefit both supplier and consumer countries.

n) Both leaders reaffirmed the importance of addressing global environmental issues such as climate change and renewed their intention of working towards a successful outcome at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.

o) The President of Peru reiterated Peruvian support for Japan's permanent membership of a reformed United Nations Security Council. The Prime Minister of Japan highly appreciated Peru's consistent support in this regard. Both leaders reaffirmed the importance of the reform of the UN Security Council and expressed their determination to continue their cooperation on this issue.

p) Both leaders expressed grave concern over the launch of a missile by North Korea. They shared the view that it was a serious violation of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions. They reiterated their stance that North Korea must take concrete actions towards its denuclearization, to which it committed itself under the 2005 Six-Party Talks Joint Statement. The Prime Minister of Japan reemphasized the importance of solving the abduction issue and the President of Peru expressed his hope for the early solution on this issue.

q) The Prime Minister of the Japan took note of the holding of the Third Summit of South America - Arab countries (SAAC), to be held in Lima in the second half of 2012.

r) Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further cooperation within Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) as well as the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC).

s) Both leaders expressed their support for the principles and norms that govern the World Trade Organization (WTO) and declared their wish for the successful conclusion of the Doha Development Agenda negotiations.

The President of Peru conveyed his gratitude for Japan's warm hospitality and extended an invitation to the Prime Minister of Japan to pay a visit to Peru in the near future.

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