Telephone Talks between Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry

February 4, 2013
Japanese

On Sunday, February 3, from 11:00 P.M. for approximately 30 minutes, Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs, held telephone talks with the Honorable John F. Kerry, U.S. Secretary of State, who has just recently assumed his post. The outline of the talks is as follows.

Foreign Minister Kishida congratulated Secretary Kerry on his assumption of the post of Secretary of State. In response, Secretary Kerry expressed gratitude and also congratulated Foreign Minister Kishida on his assumption of the post of Minister for Foreign Affairs. The two ministers shared the view that they would meet directly at an early opportunity and continue to cooperate on a wide range of issues.
Foreign Minister Kishida stated that the Japan-U.S. Alliance is the cornerstone of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, and that under the increasingly severe security environment in the region, he wanted to further strengthen the Alliance. Secretary Kerry agreed that the Japan-U.S. Alliance is the cornerstone of peace and stability in the region and expressed gratitude for the role that Japan had fulfilled in addressing regional and global issues.
The two ministers shared the view that Japan and the United States would continue to cooperate closely to urge North Korea to exercise self-restraint on the nuclear issue. In addition, they also exchanged views on bilateral issues and Asia-Pacific regional affairs.

(* The foregoing is a provisional translation. The date indicated above denotes the date of issue of the original in Japanese.)

(END)

Back to Index