Japan-Burundi Relations
Courtesy Call on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by H.E. Dr. Joseph Butore,
Second Vice President of the Republic of Burundi
August 30, 2019
Courtesy Call on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by H.E. Dr. Joseph Butore,Second Vice President of the Republic of Burundi(Photo: Cabinet Public Relations Office)
On August 30, for about 15 minutes, from 11:10 am, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received a courtesy call from H.E. Dr. Joseph Butore, Second Vice President of the Republic of Burundi. The overview of the courtesy call is as follows. Second Vice President Butore is visiting Japan to participate in the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7) held from August 28 to 30.
- At the outset, Prime Minister Abe remarked, “I welcome Second Vice President Butore’s first visit to Japan and the participation in TICAD7.” Prime Minister Abe stated that the establishment of peace and stability is the key for the development of Burundi and Japan will cooperate in its development effort. In response, Second Vice President Butore stated, “As discussed at TICAD7, we would like to work toward the promotion of business relations.”
- Following that, Prime Minister Abe expressed his expectation for a democratic presidential election next year. In addition, Prime Minister Abe announced that, to assist Burundi’s development, JICA decided to resume deploying Japanese staffs to its resident office and that Japan intents to support the improvement of food security in Burundi. In response, Second Vice President Butore welcomed the deployment of JICA Japanese staffs for the first time since 2015, and expressed expectations for Japanese companies to enter into Burundi.
- The two leaders also exchanged views regarding cooperation in the international arena, including UN Security Council reform, and the North Korea situation.