German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul is to visit Japan for three days next week for talks with his Japanese counterpart Iwaya Takeshi and a visit to the World Expo in Osaka.
The German foreign ministry announced his trip on Wednesday. It will be his first visit to Japan since taking office, and the country is his first destination in Asia.
A ministry spokesperson said Wadephul will arrive in Tokyo on Monday and will meet with Iwaya for a strategic dialogue.
The ministers are expected to discuss the situation in the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic regions, as well as economic security with a focus on critical raw materials.
The spokesperson said Wadephul will travel to Osaka to visit the Expo on Tuesday before flying on to Indonesia on Wednesday.
The minister’s trip is apparently taken as kick-starting Asian diplomacy of the administration of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, which was inaugurated in May.
Japanese government sources say Wadephul is expected to seek deeper cooperation in the field of security with Japan, which shares such values as rules-based international order and democracy.
The sources say the German foreign minister reportedly hopes to deepen ties not just bilaterally but also across the region, in view of China’s increasing maritime activities and the North Korean situation.
They say the ministers are also expected to exchange views on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Middle East situation.
AloJapan.com