Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Japan Kojima's Attendance to the Post Forum Dialogue in Nauru

August 20, 2001

The Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Toshio Kojima, attended the Post Forum Dialogue Partners Meeting with the PIF countries, which was held in Nauru in the afternoon on Monday 20 August. The participants were H.E. Teburoro Tito, President, Kiribati, Hon. Phil Goff, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand, Hon. Jean Alain Mahe, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Vanuatu, and others.
Parliamentary Secretary Kojima explained about the implementation of the Miyazaki Initiative, which is a set of concrete measures of the "Pacific Common Frontiers Initiatives" proposed by Japan at the PALM 2000 in April 2000. He announced that a JICA, JETRO and PIF international symposium will be held in the theme of human resource development policies for sustainable development for Pacific islands countries on 24 September in Fiji. He also expressed that Japan would provide regional co-operation by utilising the Palau International Coral Reef Center, which was completed in January by Japan's grant aid, and the South Pacific Regional Environment Program (SPREP) Training Center in Samoa, which is under construction by Japanese assistance.
The PIF countries expressed their gratitude for Japan's support extended so far and their hope for Japan's continuing active role in this region. In this regard, the PIF countries expressed their hope that Japan would hold a next Japan PIF summit meeting (PALM) in the near future.
Japan and the Post Forum Dialogue Partners also had useful discussions on the matters of common concerns including the activities of the Pacific Island Centre (PIC), fisheries issues, regional situations including Fiji and Solomon and the shipment of radioactive materials. They ascertained that they would continue dialogues on those issues. They shared views on the importance of the issues including the collection of small arms, CTBT and climate change, and of the continuing co-operation on those issues.
Parliamentary Secretary Kojima had bilateral meetings with Presidents of Nauru and Kiribati and Prime Minister of Tonga and Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji on 20 August. He will have a bilateral meeting with President of Nauru on 21 August.

(END)

Back to Index