On 17 July in Tokyo, in the margins of the 10th Japan-Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM10), the Prime Minister of Japan, the Hon. KISHIDA Fumio, and Cook Islands Prime Minister, the Hon. Mark BROWN, discussed current and future bilateral cooperation, committing to continue collaboration in climate resilience, shipping, oceans and marine resources, renewable energy, trade, tourism, technology, and people-to-people links. They also discussed regional and multilateral issues.
The two leaders committed to sustaining joint efforts to acquire an inter-island vessel with capabilities tailored to the service requirements for the Cook Islands’ outer islands. They discussed cooperation supported by Japan’s Grassroots Program, which has delivered more than NZD 6 million to various Cook Islands community initiatives across Rarotonga and the outer islands since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2011. They discussed the expansion of bilateral technical cooperation arrangements, including emerging areas of priority interest for the Cook Islands, such as technology, particularly cybersecurity and digital banking solutions, as well as deep ocean and seabed minerals. They recalled Japan’s support for capability development of more than three hundred Cook Islanders over the last three decades.
“I welcome Prime Minister Kishida’s elevated engagement in Japan’s partnership efforts with our Pacific region since the beginning of last year,” said Prime Minister Brown. “This has manifested in the ‘All of Japan’ approach we have experienced in recent months and particularly since arriving in Japan this week, with an extensive program of in-person engagements with Japan’s Parliamentarians, local government Governors, private sector community, academic, youth, and civil society representatives.”
Prime Minister Brown has been able to meet with Japanese businesses importing Cook Islands products, including Rito Cook Islands, and meet with an array of business representatives that have product offerings of interest to the Cook Islands, particularly in the technology sphere. On regional and multilateral issues, the two leaders discussed the ALPS nuclear wastewater discharge, the Pacific Resilience Facility, and digital banking cooperation. “On the ALPS nuclear wastewater discharge, we reaffirmed our joint commitment to safeguarding the health, environment, and marine resources of the Pacific region, and I welcomed Prime Minister Kishida’s assurance that Japan would never approve discharge in a manner that endangers the well-being and livelihoods of the peoples of the Pacific or adversely affect human health and the marine environment.
I sought Prime Minister Kishida’s consideration of a contribution by Japan towards the Pacific Resilience Facility. I also sought support for sustained collaboration towards the Pacific’s efforts to reduce the cost of banking services in the region and ensure continued correspondent banking arrangements, including through digital banking products already being delivered by Japanese fintech companies across the East Asia region.” Prime Minister Kishida and Prime Minister Brown will co-chair the PALM10 Leaders Summit this morning, with outcomes to be articulated in the Leaders Declaration and Joint Action Plan to be issued at the end of the Leaders Summit.
Queries regarding this media release can be directed to [email protected]