Japan-Slovenia Relations
Meeting between Foreign Minister Kamikawa and H.E. Ms. Tanja Faton, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia
September 19, 2023
On September 19, Ms. KAMIKAWA Yoko, Minister for Foreign Affairs, who is visiting New York, U.S. to attend the UN General Assembly Meeting, held a meeting with H.E. Ms. Tanja Fajon, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia commencing at 01:00 p.m. (local time, September 20, 2:00 a.m. JST) for approximately 30 minutes. The overview is as follows.
- Minister Kamikawa expressed her sympathy for the damage caused by the floods in Slovenia last month. The Minister also and welcomed a series of visits of high-ranking officials from Slovenia to Japan since last year, whose relations, which marked the 30th anniversary since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Minister Fajon stated that she was pleased to see the deepening of exchanges between the two countries in various fields through the political consultation and others. The Minister also stated that Slovenia recognizes Japan as an important business partner and wishes to further strengthen the economic relations with Japan while increasing the investment from Japan over the past ten years. Both Ministers agreed to make more efforts to strengthen bilateral relations.
- The Ministers agreed to strengthen dialogue and cooperation at various levels to address the regional issues and to strengthen the functioning of the UN as a whole, including Security Council reform, given that both countries will be non-permanent members of the UN Security Council next year, while the international order is shaken by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. In addition, Minister Fajon also underlined the importance of work on the WPS and both Ministers agreed to deepen cooperation in this area.
- Minister Kamikawa also stated that she would like to work together with Slovenia, a strong supporter of EU enlargement, in order to support the efforts for reform by each Western Balkan country to join the EU under the "Western Balkans Cooperation Initiative". The two countries also agreed to continue working together to support such efforts in the Western Balkans.
- Minister Kamikawa explained about Japan’s efforts regarding the discharge of ALPS process water into the ocean. In response, the Minister Fajon stated that nuclear safety is an important issue for Slovenia, where nuclear power is an important source of electricity, and Slovenia can support Japan's efforts.