For Poland, which newly acceded to the EU, the EU-Japan Year of People-to-People Exchanges served as the first opportunity to realize an exchange within the broader framework of the EU and Japan.

The Year of People-to-People Exchanges opened with a concert by Kazufumi Miyazawa. At the concert, there was synergy between the band and audience, singing the song "Shima-uta", voices in unison. A wide array of events were held throughout the year, including a top-class Noh performance by Kiyokazu Kanze, the 26th head of the Kanze school; "Creative Tradition 2005", which consisted of a performance of traditional Japanese music (Bugaku-hoe, or traditional Buddhist chant) and an exhibition of the "PiezoGraph" (an exhibition of traditional Japanese pictures reproduced using the latest digital graphic arts print technique); Hatsuko Ohno doll exhibition; photo exhibition showing the heart-warming exchanges between the youths affected by the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and Poland; and a Japanese cultural festival held in a city near the border with Ukraine, a region at the eastern edge of EU, to which 10,000 people gathered.

On the Polish side, activities were carried out to actively energize the Year of People-to-People Exchanges. A 13-member Poland planning committee for the EU-Japan Year of People-to-People Exchanges was established and Andrzej Wajda, a world-renowned film director, assumed the post of honorary chairman.

It is extremely meaningful that exchange between Japan and Poland took place in such a way in a variety of areas involving a wide range of people. We will continue to put forth efforts to expand the scope of exchanges next year and onwards based on the accomplishments of the Year of People-to-People Exchanges.