Japan-Argentina Relations

On December 1, Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, during his visit to the Argentine Republic to attend the G20 Buenos Aires Summit, held a meeting commencing at 4:15 p.m. (local time; 4:15 a.m. on December 2, Japan time) for approximately 20 minutes with H.E. Mr. Mauricio Macri, President of the Argentina Republic, followed by a signing ceremony for the Japan-Argentina Investment Agreement. After that, Prime Minister Abe attended a closing ceremony for the 120th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Argentina. The overview is as follows.

1. Ahead of the closing ceremony held to wind up this year’s 120th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Argentina, Prime Minister Abe held a meeting for approximately 20 minutes with President Macri at the Kirchner Cultural Center in Buenos Aires. Prime Minister Abe expressed respect for President Macri’s leadership at the G20 Buenos Aires Summit, and explained that Japan hopes to continue to cooperate with Argentina on resolving global challenges such as defending free and open economies, as members of the G20 Troika and as strategic partners. Prime Minister Abe stated that he strongly supports the Macri Administration, which promotes free and open economic policies. In addition, Prime Minister Abe noted the progress being made with initiatives for promoting trade and investment between the two countries, including the signing of the bilateral investment agreement, the agreement in principle on a tax treaty, and the lifting of a ban on beef exports by both sides. Furthermore, Prime Minister Abe explained that investment by Japanese companies in Argentina is moving forward in a variety of fields, and welcomed the signing of an agreement establishing a credit line for the Bank of the Argentine Nation from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) for the export of infrastructure-related equipment by Japanese companies. Prime Minister Abe also welcomed that an agreement document on the One Village One Product (OVOP) technical cooperation project had been signed, and expressed gratitude for Argentina’s support for Japan’s 2025 Osaka Expo bid. Prime Minister Abe explained that he hopes to work together on the Specialized Expo 2023 in Buenos Aires.
   President Macri expressed gratitude for the support that Japan has extended for Argentina’s economic reform efforts, even when Argentina faced difficulties on the economic and financial fronts previously, along with explaining that Argentina will cooperate with Japan as the holder of the G20 Presidency next year, in 2019.
2. Following that, Prime Minister Abe attended the signing ceremony for the Japan-Argentina Investment Agreement, as well as the closing ceremony for the 120th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Argentina held at the Kirchner Cultural Center, together with President Macri.
   At the beginning of the closing ceremony, President Macri presented an address looking back on the amicable history of bilateral relations. Following that, Prime Minister Abe gave a greeting in which he explained that Argentina is a partner with whom Japan is engaging in building a free and open international economic system, and noted that steady progress is being made with the bilateral relationship, which was elevated to a strategic partnership two years ago. In addition, Prime Minister Abe expressed respect for members of the Nikkei community, who as “bridges” between the two countries have built a foundation for friendship and are participating actively in a variety of fields, as well as expressing thanks for the fact that Argentinian society coexists with the Nikkei community which has approximately 65,000 members. Prime Minister Abe also explained that he will pursue Japan’s Initiative to Enhance Connectivity between Japan and Latin America and the Caribbean as a new policy for elevating to the next level the cooperative relationship between Japan and Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina.
3. Lastly, there was a musical performance that fusedArgentinian tango music with traditional Japanese dance, and the 120th anniversary closing ceremony ended with a lively atmosphere.

• Speech by Prime Minister Abe at the Closing Ceremony for the 120th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between Japan and Argentina (Japanese (PDF) / English (PDF) / Spanish (PDF) / Portuguese (PDF))