TOKYO: Kuwait and Japan signed several memoranda of cooperation on Thursday during a formal ceremony held in Tokyo, under the patronage of His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. The agreements were signed by Kuwait’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Al-Yahya, in the presence of the Kuwaiti delegation. Details of the agreements were not disclosed. According to the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), the ceremony reflected the shared commitment of both countries to strengthen and expand cooperation across key sectors.
Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled arrived in Tokyo on an official visit to Japan on Wednesday, marking the first high-level Kuwaiti visit to the country since 2016. He is also expected to visit the Japanese city of Osaka, where Kuwait is participating in Expo 2025. An official reception ceremony for His Highness the Crown Prince was organized by the Japanese prime minister, which included a military parade and the playing of the national anthems of the countries. The prime minister also held a banquet in honor of Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled and his accompanying delegation.
After meeting with Japanese Emperor Naruhito, His Highness the Crown Prince held a series of high-level meetings with senior Japanese officials and business leaders. He received the Governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, at his residence in the Japanese capital. Present at the meeting were Foreign Minister Abdullah Al-Yahya, Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs at the Office of the Crown Prince Mazen Issa Al-Essa, Assistant Foreign Minister for the Minister’s Office Affairs Ambassador Bader Saleh Al-Tunaib, Assistant Foreign Minister for Asian Affairs Ambassador Sameeh Johar Hayat, and Kuwaiti Ambassador to Japan Sami Ghassab Al-Zamanan.
His Highness also met with Japanese Member of Parliament and Chairman of the Japan-Kuwait Parliamentary Friendship Association, Eisuke Mori. The meeting was attended by the same members of the Kuwaiti delegation.
Additional engagements included meetings with Shunichi Miyanaga, Chairman of the Japan Cooperation Center for the Middle East and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Yasuo Nishiyama, Representative Director and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Hakuhodo Japan. These meetings also took place at His Highness’s residence and were attended by the same senior officials from the Kuwaiti side. — KUNA
