Greetings from DISG Secretariat
Dear readers,
In May, the 42nd ASEAN Summit was held and concluded successfully in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, and the Chairman's Statement included a finalized schedule for ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation.
To accelerate the preparation of ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation which will be held in December this year, in this issue of the newsletter, we would like to provide you with an overview of the "ASEAN-Japan Business Week 2023," along with the following 5 topics:
- • ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit schedule finalized
- • “ASEAN-Japan Business Week 2023: Toward Innovative and Sustainable Growth” to be held
- • Certificates of Origin under EPAs for India and Malaysia to be digitalized
- • METI Minister Nishimura’s public affairs updates
- • Diplomatic relations updates
Best regards,
ISHIKAWA Hiroshi
Chair of AMEICC DISG Task Force
Executive Director, JETRO Singapore
Special Advisor to Minister, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan
ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit schedule finalized
On May 11, 2023, Mr. Matsuno, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan, announced at the Chief Cabinet Secretary's press conference that the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit will be held in Tokyo over 3 days from December 16 to 18, 2023.
Moreover, the previously issued Chairman's Statement at the 42nd ASEAN Summit on May 10-11, 2023, also stated the expectation that the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit will strengthen the leaders' involvement and establish a concrete cooperation.
As we have emphasized repeatedly in past newsletters, this year of 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation. To celebrate the remarkable development of the ASEAN-Japan partnership since 1973, and to set forth a new vision for future ASEAN-Japan relationships and a broad range of concrete cooperations, all relevant ministries and agencies of Japan are fully committed to preparations for the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit.
- May 11 Chief Cabinet Secretary's press conference (Japanese) (LINK)
- Chairman's Statement of the 42nd ASEAN Summit (English) (LINK)
“ASEAN-Japan Business Week 2023: Toward Innovative and Sustainable Growth” to be held
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and relevant ASEAN-Japan organizations will hold the “ASEAN-Japan Business Week 2023” from June 5 to June 9, 2023.
The event, which will be the third of its kind, will release the report of the ASEAN-Japan Economic Co-Creation Vision, formulated to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation. The event will also provide a wide range of discussions by experts from several fields on business opportunities in ASEAN economies and a future direction of ASEAN-Japan economic cooperation, focusing a variety of subjects related to the four pillars of the vision; [1] “Balancing diversity and inclusiveness in sustainable development,” [2] “Promoting open innovation beyond borders,” [3] “Strengthening cyber-physical connectivity,” and [4] “Building an ecosystem in co-creating dynamic human capital”.
This year's event will be the first ASEAN-Japan Business Week since 2021 to be held over a five-day period before an audience.
For more information on the program and to register for participation, please visit the special website below.
＜AJBW 2023 Website＞
https://ameicc.org/aseanjapan_businessweek/2023/en/
- ASEAN-Japan Business Week 2023 - Toward Innovative and Sustainable Growth - to be Held in a Physical Format for the First Time: ASEAN-Japan Economic Co-Creation Vision to be Released as Part of the Event, Showing a Future Direction for Economic Co-Creation in a New ASEAN-Japan Era (Japanese) (LINK)
Certificates of Origin under EPAs for India and Malaysia to be digitalized
Certificates of Origin (CO) will be shifted to issuance in electronic format for India under the India-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and those for Malaysia under the Malaysia-Japan EPA and the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) Agreement.
In order to export products from Japan using the third-party certification system under the EPA, exporters must submit documents to the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), the designated issuing agency, to prove that the exporting product is of Japanese origin and receive a certification, before applying for the issuance of a CO.
Aiming to enhance convenience for businesses, the Government of Japan has been promoting digitalization of COs. For the Japan-Thailand EPA (JTEPA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement, CO electronic issuance in PDF files has been realized, and for the Indonesia-Japan EPA (IJEPA), the data exchange of COs will be introduced in June of this year. In addition, from July 18, 2023, COs will also be shifted to issuance in PDF format for India under the India-Japan EPA, and for Malaysia under the Malaysia-Japan EPA, and the AJCEP Agreement.
- Certificates of Origin are shifted to issuance in PDF format under EPAs for India and Malaysia (English) (LINK)
METI Minister Nishimura’s public affairs update
■ Meeting with Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, Head of the Central Economic Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam
On Monday, April 17, 2023, Mr. Nishimura, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, held a meeting with Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, Head of the Central Economic Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
In the meeting, as this year is marking the 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Japan diplomatic relations establishment and the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation, they exchanged views and confirmed their commitment to deepen collaboration between the two countries in a wide range of fields, including; cooperation for industrialization and modernization of Vietnamese industries, promotion of collaboration between Japanese and Vietnamese enterprises including startups, confirmation of policies on trade policy under CPTPP and IPEF, and cooperation on energy including AZEC.
- Minister Nishimura Holds a Meeting with Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, Head of the Central Economic Committee of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (English) (LINK)
■ Meeting with ministers and heads of international organizations participating in the G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment in Sapporo
From April 14 to 16, 2023, Mr. Nishimura, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, and Mr. Nakatani, State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, held meetings with ministers and heads of international organizations who participated in the G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment in Sapporo, and discussed deeply on bilateral cooperation, while confirming on the cooperations in simultaneous promotion to ensure energy security and measures against climate change.
Focusing the participant from ASEAN countries, a meeting with Mr. Arifin, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia, was held with discussion about the future direction of cooperation in the Asia Zero Emissions Community (AZEC). The ministers also recognized the important development of a hydropower project generation in the Kayan River in North Kalimantan for clean energy transition and decarbonization of power sector in Indonesia.
Moreover, they welcomed the Memorandum of Understanding contributing to energy transition that was concluded between the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and PT Pertamina (Persero) (PERTAMINA).
- METI Minister Nishimura and METI State Minister Nakatani Hold Meetings with Ministers and International Organizations' Heads Participating in the G7 Ministers' Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment in Sapporo (English) (LINK)
Diplomatic relations updates
■ Visit to Miyazaki by Mr. Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs (Regional visit by a delegation of Young Cambodians involved in Politics)
From April 22 to 23, 2023, Mr. Shunsuke Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, visited Miyazaki Prefecture with 10 young Cambodian political officials (2 from ruling party, 7 from opposition parties, and 1 from a think tank) who were visiting Japan as a part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA)’s youth exchange program called JENESYS.
During the visit, the delegates observed the election campaign for the Miyazaki City Council election, received a briefing from State Minister Takei on election activities and the environment surrounding elections in Japan, and had a dinner meeting where they reiterated Cambodia's expectations for democratic development and exchanged views on the state of democracy and the general situation in Miyazaki Prefecture.
- Visit to Miyazaki by Mr. Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs (Regional visit by a delegation of Young Cambodians involved in Politics (Results)) (Japanese) (LINK)
■ Courtesy call on Mr. Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs by H.E. Mr. Tan, Ambassador of the Republic of Singapore to Japan
On April 18, 2023, Mr. Shunsuke Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs, received a courtesy call by H.E. Mr. Peter Tan, Ambassador of the Republic of Singapore to Japan, to deliver his farewell address.
State Minister Takei expressed his respect for Ambassador Tan's past contributions to Singapore-Japan relations and his desire to cooperate to further strengthen bilateral relations, with this year’s occasion of the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation in mind.
Ambassador Tan reviewed the long history of cooperation with Japan and the recent progress in bilateral relations, and expressed his desire to work closely with Japan to further strengthen the ties.
- Courtesy call on Mr. Takei, State Minister for Foreign Affairs by H.E. Mr. Tan, Ambassador of Singapore to Japan (Japanese) (LINK)
■ Mr. Matsuno, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan met with H.E. Mr. Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister & Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies of the Republic of Singapore
On April 25, 2023, Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno met with H.E. Mr. Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister & Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies of the Republic of Singapore during his visit to Japan.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno welcomed Deputy Prime Minister Heng's visit to Japan and expressed his ambition to further deepen cooperation with Singapore to realize a "free and open Indo-Pacific". In response, Deputy Prime Minister Heng welcomed the frequent high-level visits between the two countries and expressed his desire to further deepen the good bilateral relations between the two countries.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno stated Japan’s aspiration to collaborate in development of digital, start-up, and supply chain resilience, and to strengthen cooperation to achieve carbon neutrality in Asia. Deputy Prime Minister Heng expressed Singapore's eagerness to strengthen cooperation with Japan to address the shared challenges of low birth-rate and aging population through science, technology, and innovation, and to maintain and strengthen various bilateral and multilateral frameworks.
Both sides also exchanged views on regional and international issues, and Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno requested Singapore's continued understanding and cooperation on the abduction issue.
- Mr. Matsuno, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan met with H.E. Mr. Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister & Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies of the Republic of Singapore (Japanese) (LINK)
■ Courtesy call on Mr. Takagi, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs by Hon. Ms. Thoummaly Vongphachanh, President of the Lao-Japan Parliamentary Association, Lao People’s Democratic Republic
On April 26, 2023, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Kei Takagi received a courtesy call by Hon. Ms. Thoummaly Vongphachanh, President of the Lao-Japan Parliamentary Association, Lao People's Democratic Republic during her visit to Japan.
Mr. Takagi welcomed Ms. Thoummaly's visit to Japan and stated that exchanges at all levels between Laos and Japan are becoming more active and that he would continue to make efforts to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries. In response, Ms. Thoummaly expressed her appreciation for the hospitality extended to her during her visit to Japan, and said that she would do her utmost as President of the Lao-Japan Parliamentary Association, to develop the long-standing good relationship between Laos and Japan.
As Laos will hold the chairmanship of ASEAN next year, and the year after next will be the 70th anniversary of the establishment of Lao-Japan diplomatic relations, both parties confirmed that this will serve as an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations in various fields, including cooperation on various regional issues, while deepening personal exchange and mutual understanding between the two countries.
- Courtesy call on Mr. Takagi, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs by Hon. Ms. Thoummaly Vongphachanh, President of the Lao-Japan Parliamentary Association, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Japanese) (LINK)
Editorial Note
