Greetings from DISG Secretariat
Dear Readers,
As we reach the final month of 2024, the season of celebration and reflection is upon us. In many parts of the world, this is a time to bid farewell to the passing year and embrace the promise of a new one. On this occasion, I would like to extend my heartfelt wishes for a joyful holiday season to all our readers. May this time be filled with warmth, cherished memories, and hopeful anticipation for the adventures that lie ahead.
It has been a true privilege to share this year with you, and we are immensely grateful for your continued support and engagement. We look forward to bringing you more interesting updates and activities through this newsletter in the coming year as we continue this journey together.
This December volume highlights activities that have further deepened the ties between Japan and ASEAN countries. Highlights include engagements by Prime Minister Ishiba, who conducted summit meetings with the leaders of Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia. These discussions focused on reinforcing bilateral commitments and exploring opportunities for future cooperation. We also feature a ministerial meeting between Japan and Thailand, where key discussions were on the automotive industry and human resource development.
Including these highlights, this volume cover 4 topics as follows;
- • Japan-Malaysia Summit Meeting
- • Japan-Vietnam Summit Meeting
- • Informal Talks between Prime Minister Ishiba and President Prabowo of Indonesia
- • Minister Muto Meeting with Minister of Industry Akanat of Thailand
Best regards,
ISHIKAWA Hiroshi
Chair of DISG Task Force
Executive Director, JETRO Singapore
Special Advisor to Minister, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan
Japan-Malaysia Summit Meeting
On November 15, 2024, Mr. Shigeru Ishiba, Prime Minister of Japan, who is visiting the Republic of Peru to attend the APEC Leaders’ Meeting, held a summit meeting with His Excellency Dato’ Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia. The overview is as follows;
At the outset, Prime Minister Ishiba expressed Japan’s commitment to supporting Malaysia, the ASEAN Chair for next year, and emphasized the importance of working closely together across a wide range of areas. In response, Prime Minister Anwar highlighted Malaysia’s strong focus on cooperation with Japan, describing it as a longstanding and vital partner, and expressed his intention to continue fostering close collaboration.
Prime Minister Ishiba underscored Japan’s emphasis on strengthening ties with Malaysia, welcomed the expansion of bilateral cooperation in the area of security, and conveyed Japan’s desire to advance concrete collaboration in maritime safety and energy transition. In turn, Prime Minister Anwar reaffirmed his commitment to deepening cooperation with Japan across various sectors, including security.
The two leaders also exchanged views on enhancing ASEAN-Japan cooperation, as well as addressing regional and international challenges, and agreed to work together to tackle these issues.
- Japan-Malaysia Summit Meeting (English) (LINK)
Japan-Vietnam Summit Meeting
On November 16, 2024, Mr. Shigeru Ishiba, Prime Minister of Japan, who is participating in APEC summit meetings, held a meeting with H.E. Mr. Luong Cuong, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The overview is as follows;
At the outset, Prime Minister Ishiba congratulated President Cuong on his appointment. Highlighting President Cuong’s military background and his own experience as a former Minister of Defense, Prime Minister Ishiba expressed his desire to enhance bilateral relations, particularly in the security field. In response, President Cuong congratulated Prime Minister Ishiba on his appointment and emphasized his commitment to cooperating under the framework of the “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia and the World.”
The two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation under this new partnership across a broad range of areas. This includes strengthening people-to-people exchanges at various levels, including high-level engagements; expanding economic collaboration, particularly in emerging areas such as digital transformation (DX) and green transformation (GX); enhancing economic cooperation, including infrastructure development; promoting security cooperation; advancing human resource development; and addressing challenges posed by aging societies.
The leaders also exchanged views on regional and international developments and reaffirmed their commitment to jointly addressing key issues, including peace and stability in the South China Sea, to ensure regional and international security.
- Japan-Viet Nam Summit Meeting (English) (LINK)
Informal Talks between Prime Minister Ishiba and President Prabowo of Indonesia
On November 16, 2024, Mr. Shigeru Ishiba, Prime Minister of Japan, who is visiting the Republic of Peru to attend the APEC Leaders’ Meeting, held informal talks with H.E. Mr. Prabowo Subianto, President of the Republic of Indonesia. The overview is as follows;
Prime Minister Ishiba emphasized the importance of cooperation with Indonesia to realize a Free and Open Indo-Pacific based on the rule of law. He expressed his desire to make concrete progress in security cooperation, including the transfer of defense equipment. In response, President Prabowo expressed his intention to further advance cooperation, and the two leaders agreed to work together in this area.
The two leaders also discussed bilateral cooperation in other key areas, including the establishment of a school meal program, which is a priority for the Prabowo administration.
- Informal Talks between Prime Minister Ishiba and President Prabowo of the Republic of Indonesia (English) (LINK)
Minister Muto Meeting with Minister of Industry Akanat of Thailand
On November 22, 2024, Mr. Muto Yoji, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, held a meeting with Mr. Akanat Promphan, Minister of Industry of the Kingdom of Thailand. They exchanged views on bilateral cooperation in the automotive industry, human resource development and other areas.
Minister Muto emphasized the importance of enhancing the competitiveness of Thailand’s automotive industry and called for the early launch of the “Energy and Industry Dialogue.” The two ministers agreed to cooperate in building a next-generation automotive industry in Thailand.
Both sides also discussed specific support for Japanese companies operating in Thailand, including utilizing subsidies for Global South cooperation in human resource development, as well as collaboration on EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan. They reaffirmed their commitment to continued cooperation across various fields moving forward.
- Minister Muto Holds Meeting with Mr. Akanat Promphan, Minister of Industry of the Kingdom of Thailand (English) (LINK)
Editorial Note
