Kishida leaves Haneda Airport for France on Wednesday.
16:06 JST, May 1, 2024
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida departed Haneda Airport on Wednesday morning aboard a government plane and began his state visits to France, Brazil and Paraguay.
In France, the first leg of the trip, Kishida will deliver a keynote speech on Thursday at a ministerial council meeting of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, headquartered in Paris. He will also attend an event on generative artificial intelligence.
Before departing Japan, Kishida told reporters at the airport, “I would like to advocate that Japan take the lead in efforts to build and strengthen a free, fair, rules-based international economic order.”
“I would also like to promote discussions on international issues, including generative AI,” he added.
In Brazil, Kishida is expected to meet with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to confirm cooperation between the two provinces on decarbonization. Brazil is this year’s chairman of the Group of Twenty. Kishida will also emphasize the importance of cooperation with emerging and developing countries, collectively known as the Global South. He returns to Japan on Monday.
