Meeting Between Mr. Yoshiro Mori, Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Japan, and Mr. Alpha Oumar Konare, Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union
(Overview)

25 September 2007

Mr. Yoshiro Mori, Special Envoy of the Prime Minister, exchanged views with Mr. Alpha Oumar Konare, Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU) and former President of Mali, for approximately 20 minutes from 4:15 p.m. on September 24, in New York (from 5:15 a.m. on September 25, JPT). An overview of this meeting follows.

1. Opening Remarks

At the outset, Special Envoy Mori explained that as a result of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's announcement of resignation, he had been dispatched as Special Envoy of the Prime Minister to attend the High Level Event on Climate Change. He said that it was regrettable since Prime Minister Abe wanted to attend the meeting himself. Special Envoy Mori also provided a thorough explanation of the political situation in Japan. Chairperson Konare stated that he had only recently met Prime Minister Abe at the G8 Heiligendamm Summit, and that he was deeply sorrowed to hear that his health condition had worsened. He added that he was praying for a recovery of the Prime Minister. Furthermore, the Chairperson stated that he was reassured to learn that the Prime Minister-to-be Yasuo Fukuda would continue to maintain Japan's interest in Africa.

2. Climate Change

Chairperson Konare stated that climate change was a serious issue, and that African nations must regard it as a problem of Africa itself. He added that negotiations on climate change were scheduled to be held in Bali.

3. Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD)

(1) Chairperson Konare stated that a meeting of the Expanded Steering Committee of TICAD IV was scheduled to be held in New York in October, and that he would like to ensure an appropriate level of attendance from the AU side. He noted that the success of TICAD was important, adding that TICAD was the very first opportunity that African nations had had to foster partnership with the international community, although other nations had held similar partnership meetings following TICAD. Furthermore, the Chairperson stated that Special Envoy Mori had played an important role in TICAD III, which was held during the tenure of then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, by effectively presiding the meeting as Chairman.

(2) Special Envoy Mori stated that Prime Minister Abe had himself wanted to host TICAD IV, but that given the recent events this would not be possible. Furthermore, he stated that the Prime Minister-to-be Fukuda is extremely knowledgeable about foreign affairs and has much interest in Africa, and added that when Special Envoy Mori had visited Africa for the first time as Japanese Prime Minister, then Chief Cabinet Secretary Fukuda expressed great support for that visit.

(3) Chairperson Konare stated that he believed that Prime Minister Koizumi visited Africa because Prime Minister Mori had visited Africa before. Special Envoy Mori responded that his visit to Africa was indeed meaningful in that he had made such good friends as Chairperson Konare and President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.

(4) Chairperson Konare stated that Japan's TICAD is important for dialogue and coordination with Africa. He stressed that although China and many other nations have held meetings in partnership with Africa, it was Japan that had initiated such meetings. The Chairperson mentioned that almost 25 heads of state from Africa had participated in TICAD III, and that it seemed as if an AU meeting had taken place in Japan. He appreciated the great initiative displayed by Japan.

(5) Special Envoy Mori called on Chairperson Konare to encourage the heads of state of Africa to participate in TICAD IV, and the Chairperson responded that he would cooperate in this regard.

4. Other Matters

Special Envoy Mori stated that by means of this year's budget allocation, six new Japanese embassies would be established in 2008, and that three of these would be in Africa, including in Mali. Chairperson Konare expressed his gratitude for this.