Meeting and Dinner between Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Seiji Maehara and Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova

November 25, 2010
Japanese

On November 25 (Thu) for about 1 hour and 30 minutes from 7:30 p.m., Mr. Seiji Maehara, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, had a meeting and exchange of views during dinner at Iikura House with H.E. Mrs. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, who was visiting Japan as a special guest on the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The overview of the meeting is as follows.

At the start, Minister Maehara welcomed Director-General Bokova’s first visit to Japan in her current position, and expressed an intention to continue strengthening the cooperative relationship Japan has nurtured with UNESCO. In response, Director-General Bokova reiterated her appreciation for Japan’s assistance to UNESCO to date, in such areas as cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible and education.
With regard to future cooperation, Director-General Bokova pledged to continue carrying on the UNESCO reforms, and engage more actively in post-conflict reconstruction and global issues by capitalizing on its expertise. Minister Maehara agreed that Japan would continue cooperating wherever possible.
Concerning the 40th Anniversary of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage in 2012, Minister Maehara agreed that Japan would work closely with UNESCO for its successful implementation.

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