Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoriko Kawaguchi paid Courtesy Call on President of the Republic of the Philippines Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

1. On 3 December 2002, Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoriko Kawaguchi paid a courtesy call on President of the Republic of the Philippines Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The following is an outline of the meeting.

2. In her opening remarks, Foreign Minister Kawaguchi stated that she welcomed President Arroyo's visit to Japan as a state guest, and expressed gratitude for President Arroyo's comments in her address to the Diet that afternoon that the Philippines thought highly of and had great trust in Japan. In addition, Foreign Minister Kawaguchi noted the importance of ASEAN and the East Asian region to Japan.

3. President Arroyo expressed her appreciation for the warm welcome she had received and expressed gratitude for the assistance provided by Japan, which is the largest donor country to the Philippines. President Arroyo also stated that although Japan was currently facing a stringent economic situation, the Philippines, along with other countries, expected that Japan would continue playing a leadership role in the regional economy, given its continued large economic presence in the region. In addition, President Arroyo further expressed her continued support for the efforts being made toward structural reform by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

4. With regard to the situation in Mindanao, President Arroyo stated that, as a result of the series of operations to repel the Abu Sayyaf Group, its size had been reduced from a strength of several thousand people to just several hundreds. She also stated that, to solve the issue of terrorism, it was necessary to resolve the issue of poverty, which could create hotbeds of terrorism. In addition, concerning regional issues such as measures against piracy and terrorism, both leaders shared the view that such issues should be tackled in a cooperative manner by the countries of the region, including Japan and the Philippines.


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