Ambassador Grauls, Professor Telo, Ambassador de Schoutheese, distinguished speakers, dear professors, students, ladies and gentlemen,
First of all, I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations on the opening of the Annual Conference on EU-Japan Relations, which is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year. This is my third time to address this very successful conference, and, as always, it is a great honour and pleasure to do so. I wish to express my appreciation to Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), International Christian University (ICU) of Japan, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), and the Royal Institute for International Relations, Egmont for their efforts in organising this event in cooperation with the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA), and the Garnet Network of Excellence.
This conference was first held in 1998, with a seminar entitled “EU-Japan Interests in a Globalised World.” 1998 was a year in which the EU was preparing to face many important challenges such as the single currency and enlargement. While an enlarged and stronger EU was expected to contribute to increased prosperity in the world, there was a certain suspicion in some quarters that the EU might have a negative impact on economic development in other regions.
Japan, however, did not share that suspicion, being convinced of the positive effect a stronger, more united EU would have. The rest as they say is history. Japan and EU are closer today than they have ever been, and we continue to foster even closer relations in every field.
These closer relations have (no doubt) been deepened as a result of the important opportunities this conference has been providing for academics and government officials from Japan and the EU to exchange ideas and views.
(Current Japan-EU Cooperation)
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Japan-EU relations went through a rather difficult period in the 1970’s and 1980’s. This was due to several market access and trade related issues, which unfortunately became highly politicised. Thankfully, these tensions had ceased by the mid 1990’s as the increased investment by both parties in each other’s economy, resulted in a new found maturity in our economic relations. The past decade has witnessed a firm and steady development in our dialogues and cooperation at various levels, not only in the economic field, but also in the areas of peace, security, and many other global issues.
At the level of government, annual consultations at the highest level began as early as 1991. The political leaders of Japan and the EU at this year’s 16th Japan-EU Summit agreed on a long-term goal to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by half or more before the year 2050. They subsequently played a leading role at the G8 Summit in Heiligendamn in formulating the consensus on climate change.
Let me mention here a few important political dialogues held regularly between Japan and the EU to demonstrate how we are becoming much closer strategic partners.
The first Japan-EU Strategic Dialogue on the East Asian Security Environment was held in 2005, with the fifth round taking place at the beginning of this month. The political and economic evolution of East Asia, including China and the Korean Peninsula, is a subject of particular interest to the international community; however until recently there was a tendency for the EU to regard this region foremost as an economic market. More attention ought to have been paid to the various security problems and political challenges existing there. Now that there is a regular dialogue at the level of senior officials, we feel that the EU has come to understand and grasp more deeply the political and strategic situation of the region and the implications it may have for the stability and security of the international community.
Central Asia is another region of mutual interest. Japan and the EU initiated their Strategic Dialogue on Central Asia last year and the second meeting took place earlier this year. There are of course many other areas where we are exchanging views such as the West Balkans, the Middle East, the United Nations, disarmament, and human rights. Global issues including the environment, energy, telecommunications and IT, finance, competition, and development assistance have also been important subjects on the agenda of Japan-EU meetings at a high level.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In spite of Japan’s lagging economic situation of the past 15 years, the number of Japanese affiliated companies in Europe has been increasing at a steady rate. The total number of Japanese affiliates in Europe tripled from around 2,000 in 1996 to just over 6,000 in 2005. Japanese investment in Europe has also grown steadily in recent years, and on a net-flow basis, was greater than that to the United States in 2006. Trade between Japan and the EU continues to be vitally important to both sides.
Mutual flows of trade and investment have been aided by the “Regulatory Reform Dialogue” between the Japanese Government and the European Commission which represents a very pragmatic and useful forum for two-way consultation on regulatory aspects of our economic relations. Since it was first launched in 1994, each year both sides have exchanged specific requests for regulatory improvement and conducted intensive negotiations resulting in a much improved regulatory environment in both Japan and the EU.
Another dialogue which held its 9th annual meeting in Berlin in June is the Japan-EU “Business Dialogue Round Table,” or BDRT. This group succeeded the “Japan-EU Industrialists Round Table” which was launched in 1995. The BDRT makes various recommendations and I would like to mention just one from this year which may be of interest to you. I quote, “the BDRT proposes Japan and the EU authorities to establish a task force with business support to explore the feasibility of a Japan-EU Economic Integration Agreement.” We will be keeping a close watch on future developments in this process.
(Future Japan-EU Partnership)
This year, the EU celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome. By ending a chain of wars and uniting a continent of 490 million people in peace and prosperity, Europe has accomplished the greatest goal of its history. Further to that goal, the knowledge and experience this stronger, more united Europe has gained from its long history will be indispensable in achieving a balanced, more stable, and more prosperous world, particularly at this globalised juncture. Therefore, I strongly hope that the leaders of the EU member states will do their utmost to ensure that all states ratify the Lisbon Treaty, and that it will enter into force at the beginning of 2009.
Japan too has a global role to play, very often in step with the EU. Next year Japan is to host two important meetings: the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, TICAD IV, in May, and the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit in July. In order to tackle the pressing issues of common interest such as climate change and African development, Japan and the EU should continue and further deepen their cooperation.
(Conclusion)
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The motto of the European Union is “United in Diversity”. The EU derivers its power from unity of the members, with their diverse aspects. So, ‘Unity is Power.’ But we know that there are other ‘powers’ as well. For example, ‘Knowledge is Power’ and ‘Continuity is Power.’
As I mentioned at the outset, this conference on EU-Japan relations is celebrating its 10th anniversary. It has served as a meeting place for gifted academics and specialists from Japan and the EU and has been held annually for the past 10 years. Therefore both the qualities of ‘knowledge’ and ‘continuity’ are embodied in this endeavour. For this reason, I would like to express my respect to those people who have dedicated themselves to the organisation of this conference, and in particular Professor Remacle and Professor Telò of ULB, Professor Franck of KUL, and Professor Ueta of ICU, who have played central roles since the beginnings of these conferences. I am confident that this conference will continue its tradition well into the future, and that Japan-EU relations will be further improved as a result.
Thank you for your attention.
