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Video Message by Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan for the UK’s “Musubi” Initiative

May 22, 2025

On 22nd May, the UK National Day Reception was held in Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, and Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, delivered a video message to welcome the UK’s “Musubi” initiative.

At the reception, the Rt Hon. Lisa Nandy MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, announced the launch of the UK's new "Musubi" initiative, aimed at promoting people-to-people exchanges between Japan and the UK.

In his message, Minister IWAYA congratulated the launch of this initiative and noted that both countries reaffirmed their commitment to revitalizing people-to-people exchanges in the "Japan-UK Hiroshima Accord." . He also expressed his hope that this initiative would further strengthen the Japan-UK relationship, now stronger than ever.

(Reference1) ”Musubi” initiative

The "Musubi" Initiative is a project aimed at nurturing the next generation of leaders in Japan and the UK through initiatives such as scholarship support, sports and cultural exchanges, and promoting the active participation of women in business. This initiative is based on the "Memorandum of Cooperation on People-to-People Exchanges between Japan and the UK" signed in 2023 and is primarily led by the British Embassy in Tokyo.

(Reference2) Related Links

(Reference3) Video Message Scripts

 Minister IWAYA’s Video Message Scripts in English(PDF) and Japanese(PDF)

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