Press Releases

On March 27, from 3:45 p.m. for approximately 20 minutes, Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs received a courtesy call by H.R.H. Prince Khaled bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Minister of Defence, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who is visiting Japan on the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The outline of the meeting is as follows:

1. Minister Kishida said that Saudi Arabia is the the corner stone of peace and stability in the Middle East and the Gulf region, and that, in terms of energy security, it is an extremely important partner which supplies 30% of Japan’s total crude oil imports. Minister Kishida sincerely welcomed Prince Khaled’s visit to Japan, saying that H.R.H. Prince Khaled has made major contributions to the peace and stability in the Middle East, such as serving as commander of the multinational forces at the time of the Gulf War in the early 1990s.
2. In response, H.R.H. Prince Khaled expressed his gratitude for the invitation to visit Japan, and said that it is proud of being a friend with Japan. In addition, he said that he wants to convey a cordial greeting from H.M. King Abdullah and H.R.H. Crown Prince Salman of Saudi Arabia to His Imperial Majesty The Emperor of Japan and His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince of Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the people of Japan. H.R.H. Prince Khaled also expressed his condolences over the damage and casualties caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the tsunami, and said that he shares the sadness with the people of Japan. He said that Japan has addressed the damage caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the tsunami with a high degree of discipline that cannot be maintained by any other country. H.R.H. Prince Khaled also said that Japan and Saudi Arabia have maintained and developed the excellent economic relationship for more than 40 years and hope to build a good relationship in the security field, as in the economic field.
3. In response, Minister Kishida once again expressed gratitude for the sympathy and the assistant at Saudi Arabia in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Noting that almost a year and a half has passed since the demise of H.R.H. Crown Prince Sultan, father of H.R.H. Khaled, and the attendance of H.I.H. Crown Prince of Japan to his funeral, Mr. Kishida said that H.R.H. late Crown Prince Sultan made a great effort on enhancing Japan-Saudi relationships and wishes that H.R.H. Prince Khaled will continue to strive for the further development of the relationships between Japan and Saudi Arabia. In response, H.R.H. Prince Khaled expressed his desire to continue to conduct meaningful exchanges of views with Japan.
4. In addition, the two ministers exchanged views on bilateral relations and other issues.