Ms. Ferrero-Waldner, Ambassador Zepter, Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen, On behalf of one of the co-organizers of this joint symposium, the Government of Japan, I would like to express my gratitude to all who are here today for this Symposium. It is a great pleasure for me to speak to you at the opening of this significant event this morning. As you are aware, this gathering is held in response to Japan-EU Leaders ' agreement at the Summit last year. Our Leaders expected us to discuss in depth the nature and objectives of Japan-EU relations in order to seek how we can further enhance our relations.
Four panel discussions are asked to address mainly five questions to review the different aspects of Japan-EU relations. These are; what have we achieved so far? What have we learned from each other? What can we do to better understand each other? What can we do to promote further our common interest? And what concrete initiatives could be undertaken together?
In trying to address these questions, I hope that today's discussions will be able to formulate some guidance and provide a basis on further discussions for the future direction of the Japan-EU partnership.
As an introduction to today ' s discussions, let me briefly explain in a few words about the Japan-EU relationship so far.
On the governmental level, our regular dialogue at the ministerial level began in 1983 first for foreign affairs, and then their respective ministers followed suit for other domains. In 1991, we started "Japan-EU Summit" at the highest level; that is to say, the Prime Minister on the Japanese side, and the President of the European Commission and the Head of State or government of the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU on the European side. This Japan-EU annual summit has since been held in Japan and Europe alternately. This year, the 15th summit will continue the tradition in Tokyo. Consultations and meetings among high level officials have become more and more frequent these days
It is also worth noting that active exchanges have been taking place between members of the Japanese and European Parliaments, especially through annual "EU-Japan Inter-parliamentary Meetings" .
These multi-layered official dialogues have naturally contributed greatly to mutual understanding between us and to the politically consolidated foundation on which our partnership has been built.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dialogues between Japanese and European business peoples have also became active since the early 80 's. In 1999, one of these dialogues has taken shape in the form of the Japan-EU "Business Dialogue Round Table", or BDRT. Business people from both sides discuss issues of common interest to improve their business environments. At the beginning, trade issues occupied a major part. Subsequently, various other economic issues, in particular investment aspects, have emerged on the agenda.
The BDRT is not just a private forum. It annually expresses its opinions and suggestions to the Summit Leaders and their contributions are important. One of the best examples is that, in 2004, following the proposal of the BDRT, Cooperation framework for Promotion of Japan-EU Two-way Investment, which aims to facilitate an increase in foreign direct investment, was adopted at the Summit.
The development in our relations is not limited to political and economic fields. Rich in cultural and social heritage, Japan and the EU share much in these spheres as well. As we all know, 2005 was designated as the "Japan-EU Year of People-to-People exchanges" . Many of you here may even have participated in some of its activities. More than 1,900 events were held in Japan and in the EU countries. These events have contributed significantly to energizing further personal and cultural exchanges between the peoples.
I believe that we should continue to promote such exchanges, in order to strengthen the foundation of our relationship. Without such a solid basis at the grassroots level, political and economic exchanges would remain superficial.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Japan and the EU share fundamental values of freedom, democracy, rule of law, human rights and the market economy. And to the world that has changed dramatically since the fall of the Berlin Wall and more recently the September 11, Japan and Europe can contribute more. Our partnership should be considered in a global context today.
The need to do more for peace and stability as well as for prosperity in the international community has been recognized both by the Japanese and EU Leaders. The 2001 Summit adopted "the 10-year Action Plan for Japan-EU Cooperation" . This Action Plan encompassed a wide range of political issues of international importance as well as economic, social and cultural areas. West Balkan, Iran and East Asia are only a few of the examples where we work closely together. In this regard, I want to draw your particular attention to a strategic dialogue on the East Asian security environment. The holding of this dialogue was agreed at the last year Summit. Several Meetings took place in the course of the last year to the satisfaction of two sides. It is expected that this kind of dialogue will be continued and expanded.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Japan and the EU face other challenges common to both. Some are global, and others are about our respective societies.
Poverty plagues the world. To fight against such suffering, technical and financial assistance will continue from both Japan and the Japan through more and better coordination. Environmental issues have also constantly been on our common agenda. We are currently working closely together in a wide range of issues from climate change to energy efficiency, terrorism to non proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, avian influenza to other infectious diseases.
In addition to these world issues, when we look at our own societies, we can also find many important problems which we have to tackle. For instance, Japan and some of the EU Member countries are faced with rapidly aging societies, accompanied by extremely low birth-rates. This implies a possible decrease in economic capacity if appropriate measures are not put in place. In this context, we could share experiences and learn from each other.
In order to find ways of attaining our common goals in the partnership, this symposium is certainly an opportune occasion. It is my hope that lively and substantive discussions in this forum provide useful input for our Leaders to think about our future, more enhanced relationship.
