Japan and the United Nations

On Thursday, 26 September, commencing at 10:10 a.m. (Japan time: Thursday, 26 September, 11:10 p.m.) for approximately 25 minutes, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, during his visit to New York to attend the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, held a Japan-Pakistan summit meeting with H.E. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. An overview of the meeting is as follows.  

 

 

Prime Minister Abe congratulated Prime Minister Sharif on his inauguration as Prime Minister. Prime Minister Abe appreciated that the general election in Pakistan in May represented a major step towards the consolidation of democracy in the country. Prime Minister Abe mourned the loss of the victims of the terrorist attack on the Christian church in Peshawar on 22 September and of the major earthquake on 24 September, both of which resulted in many fatalities and injuries, and expressed his condolences on behalf of the Government of Japan. 

 

(1) Prime Minister Abe expressed that the political stability and economic development of Pakistan were critical to the stability and growth of Southwest Asia, and that Japan looked forward to cooperating with Pakistan for its even brighter future. The Prime Minister expressed his hopes for developing a new partnership between Japan and Pakistan.

(2) Prime Minister Sharif expressed his appreciation for the assistance Japan has provided. The Prime Minister described Japan as a friend that always helped Pakistan when it needed assistance, such as the emergency assistance in the wake of the flooding in 2010 and 2011, and hoped that the two countries could further strengthen their bilateral relationship, including in the areas of trade and investment.

 

(1) Prime Minister Abe praised the Sharif administration for giving top priority to the immediate challenges of rebuilding Pakistan’s finances and economy and improving its security situation. The Prime Minister noted that from the standpoint of promoting Japanese companies’ investment in Pakistan and strengthening the Japan-Pakistan economic relationship, improving the security situation in major cities including Karachi, and solving the electricity issue were essential. Prime Minister Abe expressed hopes for Prime Minister Sharif’s leadership.

(2) Prime Minister Sharif explained the Pakistani Government’s efforts to improve security situation and its initiatives to rebuild the economy and finances.       

 

(1) Regarding Afghanistan, Prime Minister Abe stated that the cooperation of Pakistan was the key to the stability of Afghanistan. Prime Minister Sharif explained the recent situation, including President Karzai’s visit to Pakistan in August, and Pakistan’s intention to work with Afghanistan for the stability of the region.  

(2) Regarding India, Prime Minister Abe expressed his concerns over the exchanges of fire which took place intermittently between Pakistan and India at the Line of Control by the border in July and August of this year, and strongly hoped that this problem would be settled diplomatically by peaceful means through dialogues. Prime Minister Sharif responded that while there were various difficult issues between Pakistan and India, the Sharif administration hoped to deepen the dialogues with India and that he would hold a summit meeting with Prime Minister Singh on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.