Japan-United States of America Relations

1 On March 19, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a Japan-U.S. joint event with the presence of Mrs. Akie Abe, the Spouse of Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan and Ms. Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States of America, who visited Japan.

2 First, the two ladies held a meeting and expressed how happy they were to meet again following the last such opportunity in New York, in September of last year.

3 Owing the event, the two ladies reconfirmed the strong and broad-based bonds that exist between Japan and the United States in numerous areas. They talked about their views on the contributions of both countries to the international community, in particular about the current status of both countries’ assistance for girls education and steps being taken by them in developing countries. Furthermore, two ladies conversed with young female students participating in the event, and, through answering questions from participants, exchanged views on various challenges facing the international community regarding girls education, activities and efforts by people concerned about this issue. On this occasion, Japanese and the U.S. governments also jointly issued a fact sheet (The United States and Japan –Collaborating to Advance Girls Education Around the World （English (PDF) / Japanese (PDF) ).

4 After the event, a luncheon hosted by Mrs. Abe was held, and the two women deepened their relationship as first ladies amidst a very friendly atmosphere.