Mr. Itsunori Onodera, Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, to Visit Bahrain and Attend High-level Meeting concerning Darfur Issue

September 20, 2007

Mr. Itsunori Onodera, Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, will visit Bahrain and the United States (New York) from September 19 (Wed).
In Bahrain, Mr. Onodera will visit the headquarters of the Operation Ending Freedom maritime interdiction operation (OEF-MIO), exchange opinions with those concerned on the present situation and the significance of the refueling operation conducted by Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) in the ocean, and also on the strengthening of bilateral relations with the officials of the Government of Bahrain.
In New York, Mr. Onodera will attend a high-level meeting on the issue of Darfur, hosted by the United Nations and the African Union (AU), on Friday 21st, as the representative of the Government of Japan. At the meeting, participants from major countries of the international community will gather to discuss the political process aiming at an early solution of the Darfur issue and also on such matters as the security and humanitarian situation there.

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