From left to right: Japanese national flag, Ukrainian national flag
17:26 JST, June 8, 2024
The Japanese government plans to soon sign a bilateral document to strengthen its support for Ukraine, as part of efforts to emphasize to the international community the importance of continued support, it has emerged.
The government is making final arrangements for Japan and Ukraine to reach an agreement when Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit meeting starting Thursday in Italy.
Last July, G7 leaders issued a joint statement pledging long-term cooperation to protect Ukraine’s security.
The specific details of the support they will provide should be determined through bilateral discussions.
So far, Ukraine has signed bilateral security agreements with all G7 countries except Japan and the United States.
Japan also plans to emphasize to the international community the importance of continued support to Ukraine by launching an initiative to strengthen its own engagement there.
The Japan-Ukraine document will include a provision that in the event of new aggression by Russia, either country can call for bilateral talks within 24 hours so that assistance can be delivered as soon as possible, sources said.
It will also specify that the two countries will deepen cooperation in intelligence collection and analysis and accelerate negotiations to conclude an agreement that will allow the exchange of classified information on security matters, they said.
Japan plans to pledge to continue supporting Ukraine with its technological and other capabilities in the long term, the sources said. Therefore, the agreement is expected to be valid for ten years.
Given constitutional limitations, the government has focused on non-military areas such as financial assistance and economic cooperation in Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction, which Kishida calls “Japan’s unique contribution.”
Japan’s total aid since the start of Russian aggression against Ukraine has exceeded $12.1 billion (about ¥1.9 trillion).
The document reports these results and underlines the intention to continue this collaboration. In particular, it will refer to efforts to remove landmines and debris and to provide energy support, including electricity.
