Japan-Netherlands Relations
Japan-Netherlands Summit Telephone Talk
December 7, 2020
On December 7, commencing at 4:46 p.m. for approximately 12 minutes, Mr. SUGA Yoshihide, Prime Minister of Japan, held a summit telephone talk with H.E. Mr. Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The overview of the talk is as follows.
- At the outset, Prime Minister Suga paid tribute to Prime Minister Rutte’s leadership over the years, adding that he hoped to build a good relationship with him and further strengthen Japan-Netherlands relations. In response, Prime Minister Rutte congratulated Prime Minister Suga on his appointment to office and declared his intention to further develop the bilateral relations between the two countries.
- Prime Minister Rutte stated that he positively evaluated the Japan’s measures against the COVID-19 and looked forward to the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games next year. He also mentioned that the Indo-Pacific region has increased its importance for Europe including the Netherlands and that the Government of the Netherlands has released its own Indo-Pacific Guidelines. In response, Prime Minister Suga stated that Japan and the Netherlands are strategic partners sharing fundamental values such as freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and he welcomed the fact that the Netherlands has recently released its own Indo-Pacific Guidelines. The two leaders shared the view to work together to realize a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific.”
- Furthermore, the two leaders affirmed that Japan and the Netherlands would strengthen their cooperation in a wide range of areas including the economic sphere. They also shared the view to cooperate in the international fora, such as in addressing North Korea, including the abductions issue.