Latest news with #Iwaya
Yomiuri Shimbun
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japan to Strengthen Economic Cooperation with ASEAN: Iwaya
KUALA LUMPUR (Jiji Press) — Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya expressed his country's eagerness to strengthen economic cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, at a meeting with his ocunterparts from ASEAN member states in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. Iwaya stressed the increasing need to maintain and strengthen a rules-based, free, fair and open international economic order, at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump is imposing high tariffs. The top Japanese diplomat described ASEAN as a cornerstone for realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific, and indicated plans to strengthen cooperation in areas including maritime security, transnational organized crime and cybersecurity. The ASEAN side underscored the importance of free navigation in the South China Sea and the peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, with China in mind. Later in the day, Iwaya attended a meeting of foreign ministers from ASEAN plus Japan, China and South Korea. He expressed a vision for deepening future-oriented cooperation in a wide range of fields, including disaster prevention. The Japanese minister also voiced concern about military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, and called for the complete denuclearization of North Korea based on U.N. Security Council resolutions.
The Mainichi
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Japan seeks 'future-oriented cooperation' with ASEAN, 2 neighbors
KUALA LUMPUR (Kyodo) -- Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on Thursday called for boosting "future-oriented cooperation" among the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Japan, China and South Korea, building on a similar accord reached by the three non-ASEAN countries in March. At the outset of the ASEAN-plus-three meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Iwaya said the trilateral process involving Japan, China and South Korea has "synergy effects" with the three nations' collaboration with the regional bloc. "We will continue to work closely together with China and South Korea so that we can advance future-oriented cooperation that will also contribute to ASEAN" nations, Iwaya said. As for potential areas of cooperation, the minister pointed to common challenges in the region such as aging societies, disaster prevention, food security and efforts to tackle cross-border online fraud. Iwaya also expressed concern over deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, and called for the complete denuclearization of the latter, which continues to advance its missile and nuclear development, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi and South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon Joo also took part in the meeting. Japan, the current chair of the trilateral framework, agreed with its two neighbors in March in Tokyo to speed up preparations for a summit meeting "at the earliest convenient time," which would follow one held in May 2024 in Seoul. At that time, Iwaya said the next summit needs to be held "by the end of this year." ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Japan Today
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
Japan, U.S., Philippines reaffirm importance of navigation freedom
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, meets with Japan's Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, left, and Philippines' Foreign Secretary Theresa Lazaro during the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. The foreign ministers of Japan, the United States and the Philippines on Thursday reaffirmed the importance of freedom of navigation as they discussed the situation in the East and South China seas amid Beijing's aggressive maritime behavior. In the first trilateral ministerial meeting involving the three countries since President Donald Trump's return to the White House in January, the ministers confirmed their opposition to any unilateral actions toward attempting to change the status quo "by force or coercion," the Japanese Foreign Ministry said. Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and their Philippine counterpart Maria Theresa Lazaro took part in the meeting held on the sidelines of gatherings related to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Kuala Lumpur. The United States and its two Asian allies have been stepping up maritime cooperation, holding in June a joint training among their coast guards in an area off Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden organized the first-ever summit of the three countries in April 2024, as part of his administration's attempt to deal with China's ambitions in the region. Iwaya also called for boosting "future-oriented cooperation" among the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Japan, China and South Korea, building on a similar accord reached by the three non-ASEAN countries in March. At the outset of the ASEAN-plus-three meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Iwaya said the trilateral process involving Japan, China and South Korea has "synergy effects" with the three nations' collaboration with the regional bloc. "We will continue to work closely together with China and South Korea so that we can advance future-oriented cooperation that will also contribute to ASEAN" nations, Iwaya said. As for potential areas of cooperation, the minister pointed to common challenges in the region such as aging societies, disaster prevention, food security and efforts to tackle cross-border online fraud. Iwaya expressed concern over deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, and called for the complete denuclearization of the latter, which continues to advance its missile and nuclear development, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi and South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon Joo also took part in the meeting. Japan, the current chair of the trilateral framework, agreed with its two neighbors in March in Tokyo to speed up preparations for a summit meeting "at the earliest convenient time," which would follow one held in May 2024 in Seoul. At that time, Iwaya said the next summit needs to be held "by the end of this year." © KYODO
The Mainichi
10-07-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
Japan urges China to ease export curbs on critical minerals
KUALA LUMPUR (Kyodo) -- Japan's Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya urged his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Thursday to ease Beijing's export restrictions on critical minerals, including rare earth elements used in semiconductors, expressing "strong concern" over the negative impact of the curbs on Japanese firms. Iwaya, who met with Wang on the fringes of regional gatherings in Malaysia, also called on China to remove the remaining import ban on Japanese food items imposed in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said. The talks followed the lifting in late June of Beijing's blanket ban on Japanese seafood imports, which Tokyo had repeatedly called for since it was imposed in 2023 in response to the discharge of treated radioactive wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Even after removing the seafood ban, China continues to restrict food imports from 10 Japanese prefectures including Fukushima and Tokyo. Iwaya and Wang also discussed steps to resume China's imports of Japanese beef, suspended since 2001 due to an outbreak of mad cow disease, by putting into force a bilateral accord on animal health and quarantine measures at an early date, the ministry said. China, which mines about 70 percent of the world's rare earths used in the production of smartphones, personal computers and vehicles, has tightened its control over the materials as part of retaliatory measures in a tit-for-tat tariff war with the United States. Japanese businesses have complained about the slow approval of rare-earth export licenses. Wang told Iwaya that China will meet Japanese companies' "normal demand" for critical minerals if they observe Chinese regulations and follow necessary procedures, according to the ministry. During the talks, Iwaya and Wang, who last met in Tokyo in March, affirmed the need to promote stable ties. The Japanese minister said he welcomes the "progress on some contentious issues" made by the two Asian neighbors and hopes further bilateral cooperation will advance a "strategic and mutually beneficial" relationship. "Amid major changes in the international situation, Japan and China, which share responsibilities to the international community, are expected to deepen communication and fulfill their respective roles," Iwaya said. Wang called on Japan to have "an objective and correct understanding of China" and "adhere to a positive and rational policy" toward its neighbor, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry. On the security front, Iwaya aired his "serious concern" over recent Chinese military and coast guard activities near Japan including the expanded operations of aircraft carriers in nearby waters. The activities also included the intrusion into Japanese airspace by a Chinese helicopter near the Japan-controlled, China-claimed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea in May. In June, a Chinese military aircraft flew close to a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force patrol plane over international waters in the Pacific. On Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, Iwaya warned China against conducting further large-scale military drills near the self-ruled island, stressing the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. The Japanese minister also showed concern over Beijing's aggressive behavior in the South China Sea, where it has been engaged in territorial disputes with neighboring countries, the Japanese ministry said.
Kyodo News
10-07-2025
- Business
- Kyodo News
Japan seeks free, fair trade in talks with ASEAN amid tensions
KUALA LUMPUR - Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya called for a "free, fair and open" international economic order in his talks Thursday with his ASEAN counterparts in Malaysia, amid trade tensions stemming from the threat of steep U.S. tariffs against Japan and the group's members. Noting the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations is "at the center of global growth," Iwaya said Japan is eager to strengthen cooperation with the regional bloc, adding its role has been "increasingly important for regional peace and prosperity." With the tariffs proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump in mind, the Japanese minister stressed the need to "maintain and strengthen" the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core. Trump has said the United States will impose a 25 percent tariff on imports from Japan starting Aug. 1, while goods from six ASEAN members will face up to 40 percent duties. At the talks, ASEAN ministers pointed to the importance of ensuring freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and resolving disputes in the waters based on the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said, amid tensions between China and some ASEAN members over territorial rows. The Japanese minister also unveiled Tokyo's plan to boost people-to-people exchanges with ASEAN nations, including the dispatch of some 600 "Japanese language partners" to the region by the end of March next year. Iwaya separately met with his counterparts from the Mekong countries -- Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam -- and vowed to boost Japan's cooperation with them in such areas as disaster prevention, decarbonization and digitalization, as well as efforts to tackle cross-border crimes including online fraud. The other ASEAN members are Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore. In a joint statement, Japan and the five Mekong countries underscored the need to address transboundary issues such as cybercrimes, online scams and money laundering. Japanese nationals are among those involved in online fraud operations run by criminal organizations that have bases in Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar and Cambodia. Japan and the Mekong nations also recognized the importance of holding a new round of summit meetings involving their leaders. They last held a leaders' gathering in a video conference format in 2020.
