G7, Kobayashi (Japan): “From hospitality to agenda, well done Italy”

The manager, who takes care of relations with the press and public diplomacy, highlights the "continuities" in the themes and choices between 2023 and 2024

BARI – Congratulations to Italy “for the welcome and for the agenda” of Borgo Egnazia, with the themes of Japan’s previous presidency of the G7 carefully and in-depth, starting from the commitment to “respect of international law”: this is the message entrusted to the Dire agency by Kobayashi-Terada Maki, director general at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo.
The manager, who takes care of the relations with the press and public diplomacy, highlights the “continuities” in the themes and choices between 2023 and 2024. “It is not a surprise” underlines Kobayashi-Terada: “Prime ministers Fumio Kishida and Giorgia Meloni they have met four times since last January, also thanks to a visit by your head of government to Japan in February“.
According to the director, between the two countries “there has been coordination work to deepen discussions after the G7 summit in Hiroshima”. Kobayashi-Terada underlines: “We greatly appreciated the agenda of the G7 summit in Puglia with the dossiers on economic security and artificial intelligence”.

The summit in the Borgo Egnazia resort is the setting for the signing of a security agreement between Japan and Ukraine. According to Kobayashi-Terada, Tokyo’s support for Kiev
in the face of the military offensive launched by Russia in 2022 is explained by the fact that “it is important to respect international law”.
The interview then broadens its focus, with a reference to Taiwan, an island state claimed by China.
“Any attempt to change the status quo by force is inadmissible” highlights Kobayashi-Terada. “Kishida said today it is Ukraine but tomorrow it could be East Asia and the Indo-Pacific area.”