Japanese Prime Minister’s Last Visit among G7 Leaders
For the first time since World War II,
Ukraine “EU support, decision to change the game”
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who was the only leader of the G7 member states not to visit Ukraine, made a surprise visit to Ukraine on the 21st and had a summit meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. It is the first time since Japan’s defeat in World War II that a sitting Japanese prime minister has visited a disputed region.
At a time when Chinese President Xi Jinping, who visited Russia on the 20th and 22nd, emphasized bilateral cooperation with Russian President Vladimir Putin every day, critics say that the alliance between the West and Ukraine is also strengthening. In this regard, the EU foreign and defense ministers agreed on the 20th to provide Ukraine with an additional 1 million 155mm shells over the next 12 months.
On the 21st, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said, “Prime Minister Kishida paid tribute to the courage and perseverance of the Ukrainian people in defending their country at a meeting with President Zelensky. He also directly communicated his intention to support and solidarity with Ukraine.” Prime Minister Kishida will return to Japan on the 23rd.
Before going to Ukraine, Prime Minister Kishida visited India, a member of Quad, a coalition of four countries from the United States, Japan, India and Australia, and met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Originally scheduled to return to Japan on the 21st, he headed to Poland in Eastern Europe, which borders Ukraine. Japanese media, including NHK, reported extensively on the scene of Prime Minister Kishida boarding a train bound for Ukraine from Przemysl in southeastern Poland.
Japan is the chair country of this year’s G7 summit. The G7 summit in May will also be held in Prime Minister Kishida’s constituency, Hiroshima. The leaders of the G7, including Britain, France, Germany, and Canada, visited Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, one after another right after Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, emphasizing Western support. US President Joe Biden also appeared in Kiiwu last month, one year after the invasion, and shouted, “America is with you.”
In this situation, when only Prime Minister Kishida could not go to Ukraine, public opinion was formed that “only Japan cannot be left out.” In Japan, the situation has not been easy because the Prime Minister needs approval from the National Assembly to go abroad during parliamentary sessions, and the Self-Defense Forces cannot guard the Prime Minister abroad. However, this time, a bipartisan public opinion was formed that it could be replaced by an after-action report, and the visit was made.
Ukraine welcomed the EU’s aid of 1 million shells, calling it a “decision that could change the tide of war.” It is three times the cumulative amount of ammunition (approximately 350,000) that the EU has provided since the invasion of Russia. Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleva stressed on Twitter that “prompt delivery of ammunition and continued joint purchases are exactly what is needed at this time.”
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Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.