Press Releases
Telephone Talk between Foreign Minister MOTEGI Toshimitsu and Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates
On May 29, commencing at 12:10 p.m.for approximately 15 minutes, Mr. MOTEGI Toshimitsu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a telephone talk with Mr. William (Bill) Henry Gates III, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The overview is as follows.
1. At the outset, Minister Motegi congratulated Mr. Gates on being conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun in April 2020 and expressed his respect for strenuous activities of the Gates Foundation to combat the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). In response, Mr. Gates stated that he was honored to be conferred the decoration and explained the activities of the Gates Foundation to tackle the spread of COVID-19.
2. Minister Motegi explained assistance measures of the Japanese Government to respond to infectious diseases including COVID-19, and stated the importance of developing vaccines and ensuring fair access to vaccines. Furthermore, Minister Motegi and Mr. Gates shared the view that they would work together for the success of the Global Vaccine Summit 2020, which is scheduled on June 4.
3. In addition, Minister Motegi explained that the Japanese Government attaches importance on achievement of universal health coverage, based on the concept of human security. In this regard, Minister Motegi also expressed his intention to continue to work closely with the Gates Foundation. In response, Mr. Gates stated that he highly values the Japanese Government’s contributions to the international community in the field of global health and expressed his intention to strengthen cooperation with the Japanese Government.