Press Conferences

Mr. HAYASHI Yoshimasa, Minister for Foreign Affairs: Today, I would like to make two announcements regarding Japan’s support in response to the earthquake damage in Türkiye and Syria as well as the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

First, I will speak about the earthquake that occurred in the southeastern part of Türkiye. In order to provide maximum support to the people of Türkiye and Syria who have been suffering greatly in the aftermath of the earthquake, Japan, which has experienced major natural disasters including the Great East Japan Earthquake, has been making all efforts since immediately after the earthquake through dispatch of the Japan Disaster Relief Rescue Team, and provided emergency relief goods, and other such efforts.

As part of these efforts, in response to the appeal for humanitarian assistance issued by the UN, Japan has decided to implement a total of approximately $27 million in emergency humanitarian assistance to Türkiye and Syria through international organizations such as the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Japanese NGOs, and others. We are currently coordinating the specific content, and plan to quickly finalize it.

The Government of Japan will continue to stand with the people of Türkiye and Syria affected by the disaster, and will quickly provide necessary support based on local needs.

The second announcement is with regard to the holding of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on February 18 in Munich, which will be the first meeting to be held by Japan under its G7 Presidency this year. As I recently explained, bearing in mind that it will soon be one year since the start of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, we would like the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting to reaffirm the G7’s determination to protect the world order based on the rule of law, and send a message that the G7 will continue to support Ukraine. In light of this purpose of the meeting, we plan to invite Foreign Minister Kuleba of Ukraine to participate in the discussions at the meeting.