Japan’s New PM Takaichi Welcomed By ASEAN, Stresses Security Cooperation
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 (Bernama-Kyodo) -- New Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Sunday stressed the importance of realising a free and open Indo-Pacific, a vision conceived by the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, during her meeting with leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Kyodo News Agency reported.
Her commitment comes as Takaichi, who became Japan’s first female prime minister last Tuesday, shares many of the views on history, national security, and the economy held by Abe, who laid out the vision in 2016, six years before he was assassinated.
At the Japan–ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Takaichi, on her first overseas trip since taking office, said she would seek to further bolster ties and promote cooperation, with China’s maritime assertiveness apparently in mind.
Japan believes it is vital to build closer relations with countries in Southeast Asia, where key sea lanes lie and economic growth continues.
Takaichi said in her opening remarks in Malaysia’s capital that “Japan and ASEAN have built a relationship as trusted partners with heart-to-heart connections and through cooperation in a wide range of areas.”
“Japan advocates a free and open Indo-Pacific and consistently supports the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific.”
The 64-year-old conservative began her speech in English but switched to Japanese after a while to “save time.”
Takaichi also said Japan plans to expand ASEAN’s recipients of official security assistance while vowing to build a reliable artificial intelligence framework with the regional group.
She hopes to forge stable relationships with other world leaders after the administration of her predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, lasted just over a year.
Takaichi later attended summit talks of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC), a Japan-led decarbonisation framework, on the same day with Australia and nine ASEAN members, apart from Myanmar and East Timor.
Myanmar, which has been under military rule since a February 2021 coup, is not an AZEC member, while East Timor became the 11th member of ASEAN earlier Sunday.
Takaichi, meanwhile, held separate talks with her counterparts from the Philippines and Malaysia, ASEAN’s current chair.
She is scheduled to return to Japan on Monday for United States President Donald Trump’s trip to Tokyo. The two leaders agreed to strengthen the bilateral alliance during their first telephone conversation on Saturday.
Takaichi plans to attend a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum later this month in South Korea, where a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to draw attention.
She previously served as internal affairs minister while Abe, Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, was in office between 2012 and 2020.
-- BERNAMA-KYODO
