Press Releases

On February 10, commencing at 23:15 for 40 minutes, Mr. MOTEGI Toshimitsu, Minister for Foreign Affairs, held a Japan-U.S. Foreign Ministers' Telephone Talk with the Honorable Antony Blinken, Secretary of State of the United States of America. The overview of the telephone talk is as follows.

1. The two ministers exchanged views on the situation in Myanmar based on the G7 Foreign Ministers' statement released previously and shared their grave concern over the current situation. In particular, the two ministers strongly condemned the firing on peaceful demonstrators in Nay Pyi Taw and agreed to strongly urge the security apparatus to immediately cease violence against civilians. In addition, they shared the view to strongly urge the Myanmar military to release those who are detained, including State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and swiftly restore Myanmar's democratic political system. The ministers confirmed close Japan-U.S. coordination regarding the situation in Myanmar.
2. The two ministers shared the view to closely coordinate between like-minded countries towards the realization of a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific," and also shared the view to steadily strengthen cooperation between Japan, the U.S., Australia, and India.
3. The two ministers also discussed the regional situation, including China. They shared concerns regarding unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East China Sea, including China's Coast Guard Law, and agreed to work together in this vein. The two ministers agreed to continue close Japan-U.S. coordination in dealing with challenges the region and international community face.