Japanese FM Middle East tour starts from Doha, ends in Cairo

CAIRO – 9 September 2017: Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Tarō Kōno is to arrive in Doha on Saturday to meet with the Qatari government officials, Japanese Foreign Ministry statement said on Friday.

Kōno, who flew from Narita airport on Friday, is expected to arrive in Qatar Saturday. Kono’s tour includes quick visits to Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Egypt as a final destination in his six-day tour to the Middle East region, Japanese sources told Egypt Today.

This visit focuses on maintaining and developing a stable and friendly relationship with the Middle East region is vital and important from the viewpoint of ensuring Japan's energy security, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry statement.

On September 11, the first "Japan Arab Political Dialogue" will be launched to promote cooperation for stability and prosperity in the Middle East region.

The Arab foreign ministers and their Japanese counterpart will meet in the presence of Arab League Secretary Ahmed Abul Gheit in a bid to reach a better understanding of regional and international issues of mutual concern, the Arab League said on September 2.

The Arab-Japanese meeting, due to be held at the headquarters of the Arab League General Secretariat in Cairo, will focus only on political issues, the Japanese sources revealed to Egypt Today.

Last year, in February, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi visited Tokyo where he met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and delivered a speech at the Japanese parliament.