Japan is optimistic that the historic visit of Crown Prince Sultan to Tokyo in April this year has opened a new chapter in Saudi-Japanese relations. Many Japanese companies, buoyed by the recovery of their country’s economy, are planning to expand their business links with the Kingdom.
In a wide-ranging interview, Japanese Ambassador Shigeru Nakamura told Arab News that the Kingdom’s “Look East” policy could lift their Saudi-Japanese relations to a new high. He cited the $9.8 billion “Petro-Rabigh Project” being undertaken jointly by Sumitomo and Saudi Aramco.
When completed in late 2008, this will be one of the largest integrated refining and petrochemical projects ever built at one time. A total of 2.4 million tons of petrochemical solids and liquids, along with large volumes of gasoline and other refined products, will be produced.
“The Sharq Project by Saudi Petrochemicals Development Company (SPDC) and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) will be expanded. Saudi Aramco has invested in Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. in Japan,” said Nakamura. “I am very happy to note that many Japanese companies are interested in expanding their business relations in Saudi Arabia.”
The ambassador said he was honored to serve as Japan’s envoy to the Kingdom as relations enter a new phase in the wake of the crown prince’s visit. He believes that since 1955, when their diplomatic ties were first established, they have blossomed into “strategic and multilayered partnership.” These multidimensional ties have spread out from energy and finance into politics, culture, human networking. “With this in mind, the ‘Memorandum on Policy Consultations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’ was signed during the Crown Prince Sultan’s visit to Japan to enhance political dialogue between the two countries.”
He continued: “In order to further strengthen ties in the fields of trade, investment and energy, the government of Japan has been negotiating a FTA (free trade agreement) with GCC countries as well as an investment treaty with Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, the government of Japan will launch regular energy talks with the Saudis.”
Japan has provided and will continue to provide its technical cooperation to the Saudis in the field of human resources development. “As far as the cultural exchanges are concerned, I welcome the decision made by the Saudi government to launch a scholarship program by which hundreds of Saudi students will be sent to Japan,” said Nakamura. “This new Saudi scholarship program will, together with the existing scholarship offered by the Japanese government, further deepen mutual understanding and serve as a bridge for the future generations.”
In this context, a joint statement issued by the two sides during the visit of Prince Sultan said: “The Saudi side expresses its gratitude for the technical assistance which Japan has so far provided, mainly through the Japan International Cooperation Agency, in the various fields of human resources development to implement the Japan-Saudi Cooperation Agenda. Both sides welcome, as a role model for vocational training, the successful achievement of the Saudi-Japanese Automobile High Institute (SJAHI) project. The Saudi side also expresses its appreciation for the other projects such as the project of High Institute for Plastics Fabrication and the project of Training on Female Enterprise Promotion.”
The ambassador pointed out that relations have been boosted with the launch of direct flights to Japan by Saudi Arabian Airlines.
The Japanese envoy noted that aside from the expansion of economic relations with East Asia, the Saudi government’s focus on social welfare projects would also impact on Saudi-Japanese relations.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has launched various mega projects such as the building of ‘Economic Cities’ in Rabigh, Hail, Madinah and Jizan, and the expansion of railroad. I highly admire such efforts and also wish that Japanese companies will be able to take part in such big development projects and set up new joint venture business with Saudi partners.”
While the Middle East was facing formidable challenges, the stability of Saudi Arabia is crucial to its status as a regional power, the world’s largest oil producer and a leader of the Islamic world, he said.
“We highly appreciate the bold leadership the Saudi government has demonstrated in trying to put an end to the conflict in the Middle East as is evidenced by the Arab Peace Initiative of then Crown Prince Abdullah at the Beirut Arab Summit. On the other hand, Japan, as the second largest economy in the world, is willing to play a more active role than ever to contribute to the stability and prosperity of the global community,” says Nakamura.
The ambassador added that since Japan has shown its deep respect for diverse religious faiths, “we have been accepted as a trusted friend by all the parties to the (Middle East) conflict. This trust that we have nurtured with the Arabs has been of value when it comes to making contributions to the peace process. Thus, the relations between our two countries are very important not only for the two nations themselves but also for the international community.”
These relations should serve as a basis for stability and peace of the world, the ambassador believed. “With this in mind, in their joint statement, both the Japanese and Saudi governments underlined the importance of Japan-Saudi joint efforts for peace and stability in the entire Middle East, on such issues as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iranian nuclear program, counterterrorism, and UN reforms,” he observed.
Ambassador Nakamura underlined his determination to make the most of the momentum flowing from the Crown Prince Sultan’s visit to Japan, which he said, had “spearheaded” efforts to advance the Kingdom’s brand new foreign policy of ‘Look East’. “I am very optimistic that we will see a greatly strengthened and more fruitful Japan-Saudi relationship based upon the ‘strategic and multilayered partnership’ in the near future,” he concluded.
