Foreign Minister Iwaya shaking hands with Secretary General of the PIF, Mr. Baron Devavesi Waqa
Foreign Minister Iwaya shaking hands with Secretary General of the PIF, Mr. Baron Devavesi Waqa
Foreign Minister Iwaya holding a meeting with Secretary General Waqa
Foreign Minister Iwaya holding a meeting with Secretary General Waqa
On March 10, commencing at 11:20 a.m. for approximately 30 minutes, Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a meeting with the Hon. Mr. Baron Devavesi Waqa, Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), who is visiting Japan at the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. The overview of the meeting is as follows:
At the outset, Minister Iwaya stated that the role of the PIF Secretariat is crucial for peace, stability and prosperity in the region and that he would like to work together to address regional challenges in closer cooperation with Secretary-General Waqa. In response, Secretary General Waqa expressed his appreciation to the Government and people of Japan for Japan’s cooperation with the Pacific Islands region and conveyed a strong desire to further strengthen collaboration with Japan.
Minister Iwaya also stated that strengthening the resilience of Pacific Island countries is key to the stability of the Indo-Pacific region, conveying that Japan has decided to contribute three (3) million U.S. dollars to the "Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF)" as part of its efforts to address climate change, which is the "single greatest existential threat" to the Pacific Island countries. He also explained that this contribution to the PRF serves as a prime example of Japan’s steady fulfillment of the commitments made at the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM10) held in July last year. Secretary General Waqa highly valued Japan’s recent contribution to the PRF as a demonstration of Japan’s serious effort to address the climate crisis faced by the Pacific Island countries.
In addition, Minister Iwaya conveyed Japan’s strong support for the unity of the Pacific Islands region and the "2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent," which embodies the unity within the PIF. Both sides confirmed that they would launch a senior officials dialogue between Japan and the PIF Secretariat to strengthen communication in order to further solidify their cooperative relationship.
Regarding the discharge of ALPS treated water into the sea, Minister Iwaya explained that the safety of the discharge is ensured, and that Japan plans to support monitoring capacity-building for Pacific Island Countries implemented through the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) this year. He also reaffirmed that Japan will continue to explain its efforts in a transparent manner based on scientific evidence and enhance the confidence in the safety in the region. In response, Secretary General Waqa expressed his understanding of those Japan's efforts.
In addition, both sides also exchanged views on regional situations.