Countries & Regions

In the morning of April 20 (8:02 A.M. local time), a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred in Ya’an City, Sichuan Province in the western part of China. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent the following message of sympathy to Mr. Xi Jinping, President of China, and Mr. Li Keqiang, Premier of China.

- On behalf of the Government and people of Japan, I offer my heartfelt sympathy to the Government and people of China, and express my sincerest condolences to the victims of this disaster and their families.
- Japan is ready to offer as much assistance as needed.
- I pray that the affected region will recover as soon as possible.

Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs, sent a similar message of sympathy to Mr. Wang Yi, Foreign Minister of China, and Mr. Masato Kitera, Ambassador of Japan to China, sent similar messages to relevant departments in China.

In response, the Chinese side expressed its gratitude for the messages, stated that at the current moment the situation does not require support from abroad, and added that China will contact Japan as needed if there was a need for support in the future.