Japan and the United Nations
Telephone Talk between Prime Minister SUGA Yoshihide and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
On September 24, commencing at around 8:00 a.m. for approximately 20 minutes, Mr. SUGA Yoshihide, Prime Minister of Japan, held a telephone talk with H. E. Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations. The overview of the talk is as follows.
1. At the outset, Secretary-General Guterres conveyed his congratulations. In return, Prime Minister Suga thanked Secretary-General Guterres for his congratulatory message and welcomed the early realization of the telephone talk. Prime Minister Suga also stated that Japan attaches great importance to multilateralism and aims at realizing the rule of law through a Free and Open Indo-Pacific, and expressed his hope to closely cooperate with the UN in this regard.
2. Both sides exchanged their views on ways to address COVID-19, and confirmed that they continue to work together. In addition, they agreed that they would cooperate in a wide range of areas, including peace building, development and climate change. Secretary-General Guterres reiterated his appreciation to the international contributions made by Japan to address COVID-19. Moreover, they agreed to collaborate towards increasing the number of Japanese senior staff members working in the UN.
3. Prime Minister Suga asked for continuous understanding and cooperation towards the early resolution of the North Korean abductions issue, for which Secretary-General Guterres expressed his full support. Secretary-General Guterres also emphasized the importance of promoting denuclearization.