Press Releases
Foreign Minsiter Taro Kono Receives a Courtesy Call from Dr. PAIK Jin-Hyun, President of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS)
On February 14, from 15:15 for approximately 15 minutes, Mr. Taro Kono, Minister for Foreign Affairs, received a courtesy call from Dr. PAIK Jin-Hyun, President of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). The outline of the courtesy call is as follows.
1. Foreign Minister Kono welcomed the visit to Japan by Dr. Paik, and stated that ITLOS is an important institute for the maintenance of the rule of law and Japan, as a country that places a high priority at the rule of law and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), would like to continue working together with the Tribunal and the President.
2. The Foreign Minister indicated that the significance of the law of the sea grows even greater as the maritime issues that the international community faces, from marine environment and climate change to the arctic issues, becomes increasingly complex, and expressed his hope in this regard that ITLOS plays a role to encourage the younger generation to be more interested in such issues.
3. The Foreign Minister added that Japan promotes the initiative on a “free and open Indo-Pacific” to maintain free and open Indo-Pacific based on the rule of law as “international public goods”, and stressed that Japan will continue cooperating with the Tribunal in such efforts.
4. The President responded by praising Japan’s commitment to promoting the rule of law and peaceful settlement of disputes, and expressed his gratitude to Japan for its support and contribution to the Tribunal and the rule of law.
