Japan-Austria Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
On September 1, commencing at 6:00 p.m. local time (1:00 a.m., JST) for approximately 50 minutes, Mr. MOTEGI Toshimitsu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, who was visiting the Republic of Austria, held a meeting with H.E. Ms. Beate Meinl-Reisinger, the Federal Minister for European and International Affairs.
- At the outset, Minister Meinl-Reisinger expressed condolences over what happened in Kumamoto and over the heavy rain in Chiba, and Minister MOTEGI responded by expressing his gratitude. Minister Meinl-Reisinger welcomed Minister MOTEGI’s visit to Austria and stated that she would like to further develop relations with Japan, the most important partner in the Indo-Pacific for the EU, in terms of all areas, including the economy, people-to-people exchanges, and culture. In response, Minister MOTEGI stated that he was gratified to acknowledge the deepening bilateral relations in a wide range of areas, including the economic field backed by the growing presence of Japanese businesses in Austria, as well as in the cultural field symbolized by music. He also noted that Japan would like to further strengthen its cooperation with Austria, an important partner that shares fundamental values and principles with Japan, including with a view to the realization of an updated Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) vision. In response,
- The two Ministers confirmed their intention, taking the current international situation into consideration, to deepen cooperation in such areas as the economy and science and technology, economic security, including the strengthening of supply chain resilience, as well as emerging technologies such as robotics and AI. They also agreed to further promote exchanges among companies and researchers, including in the field of advanced technologies, through the “Japan-Austria Committee for Issues of the Future”, a public-private forum supported by the two countries.
- Minister MOTEGI also explained Japan’s positions, based on the recognition that the security of Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific is inseparable, on the situations in Ukraine, in the Middle East, and in East Asia, including North Korea’s nuclear and missile development and the abductions issue. The two Ministers reaffirmed that they would closely coordinate in addressing various challenges in each region. Furthermore, the two Ministers reaffirmed the importance of maintaining and strengthening a free and open international order based of the rule of law, and freedom of navigation, and concurred on further strengthening cooperation in international fora, in light of Austria’s term as an elected non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council from next year.
: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan