Japan-Germany Summit Meeting
(Summary)
June 11, 2004
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi held a summit meeting with Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder of the Federal Republic of Germany at the lodging of the Japanese and German delegations (Sinclair Ocean House) during his visit to Sea Island, Georgia in order to attend the G8 Sea Island Summit. The following is a summary of the meeting.
1. Bilateral Relations
(1) Japan-Germany relations are in an extremely good state, with cooperation being implemented in various areas including reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan and Prime Minister Koizumi and Chancellor Schroeder concurred on further promoting their cooperation through various frameworks.
(2) Chancellor Schroeder communicated his intention to comprehensively introduce various aspects of Germany to the people of Japan during the year of "Germany in Japan 2005/2006" and Prime Minister Koizumi welcomed this scheduled event as an opportunity in promoting mutual understanding between the two countries.
(3) Prime Minister Koizumi stated that he was looking forward to welcoming Chancellor Schroeder to Japan, to which Chancellor Schroeder responded that he would like to visit Japan in the near future, before the end of this year, if possible.
2. Iraq
(1) Prime Minister Koizumi and Chancellor Schroeder welcomed the adoption of the new United Nations Security Council resolution, a clear indication of the political process of Iraq entering into a new stage and concurred on the need for the international community to cooperate together and provide assistance for the efforts by the Iraqi people towards building a new nation.
(2) The two leaders welcomed the concrete progress seen in the reconstruction project in Iraq implemented through Japan-Germany cooperation, which was initiated following the visit to Germany by Special Envoy Ryutaro Hashimoto, and expressed their intention to further enhance cooperation on this matter.
3. Afghanistan
Chancellor Schroeder noted that Germany places importance on its reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan and is considering strengthening and further providing assistance upon a request by President Hamid Karzai of the Transitional Administration of Afghanistan, who also participated in the Sea Island Summit. To this, Prime Minister Koizumi stated that Japan would also cooperate as much as possible.
4. United Nations Reform
Prime Minister Koizumi welcomed the proactive stance taken by Germany on the issue of United Nations reform and the two leaders agreed that Japan and Germany would cooperate towards the realization of reform as the movement for the Security Council reform is now gaining momentum.
5. North Korea
Chancellor Schroeder positively appraised the results of Prime Minister Koizumi's visit to North Korea as Prime Minister Koizumi provided him with the details of his recent visit. Chancellor Schroeder further stressed the need for the continued cooperation of the international community.
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