Miles apart in distance not goals

TOKYO – A Japanese foreign affairs official suggested Monday that long-standing relations between his government and Barbados and the wider Caribbean Community (CARICOM) are likely to remain intact, as the country’s lawmakers prepare to confirm new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba over the next 24 hours.

Shimpei Otake, Principal Deputy Director of the Mexico, Central American and Caribbean Division in the Tokyo-based Ministry of Foreign Affairs was sharing his views at a briefing with journalists from the Caribbean and the Pacific, participants in this year’s journalism fellowship organised by the Association for Promotion of international CooperationCo-operation (APIC) in association with the Foreign Press Centre Japan.

Ishiba defeated nine other candidates to lead the Liberal Democratic Party last Friday and has announced intentions to call general elections on October 27, according to a Reuters report.

“Japan sees its relations with Caribbean countries as very important,”  Otake said.

“This direction will not be easily changed by the change of government, I believe,” he added, amid media reports that the incoming leader intends to place more focus on internal affairs.

Barbados and Japan established diplomatic relations 57 years ago on August 29, 1967, and this year has been designated Japan-CARICOM friendship year, marking three decades since the first Japan-CARICOM consultation in 1993 as well as the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties with Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.

That partnership, Shimpei said, has been built on shared values and principles. He listed those as freedom, democracy, human rights and respect for the rule of law.

He underscored the value of the partnership, reflecting that the world stands at an “historical inflection point” citing ongoing international conflicts such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, global supply chain challenges, and serious worldwide issues such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing impacts of climate change.

“The Japanese Government values its cooperation with CARICOM countries as partners in solving the many challenges facing the international community today,” the foreign ministry official said.

He added that the two partners will continue to place emphasis on “pursuing prosperity that can be shared by all people in the world.”

A document shared by the foreign ministry official during the briefing said Japan expects further collaboration in areas such as, “gender equality, including WPS, the rule of law in the Ocean, a world without nuclear weapons and common challenges such as disaster prevention.

Pressed to comment on current Barbados/Japan relations, Otake pointed to recent meetings involving Japan’s Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshisama, Prime Minister Mia Mottley and Minister Kerrie Symmonds. He noted that cooperation remains strong and will be further enhanced.

Japan has expressed strong support for the Bridgetown Initiative proposed by Prime Minister Mottley which seeks to transform how lending is made to developing nations in a climate crisis.

The Bridgetown Initiative is currently being discussed at high-level United Nations meetings in New York.