The European Union and Japan announced the launch of a Competitiveness Alliance to boost cooperation on trade, economic security, and innovation and the twin transitions.
President Ursula von der Leyen and the President of the European Council, António Costa met Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Tokyo for the 30th EU-Japan Summit.
They adopted a joint statement and launched a new competitiveness alliance to further strengthen a stable and predictable rules-based free and fair economic order, reinforce a competitive business environment and enhance joint competitiveness in a strategic manner.
President António Costa affirmed that Japan is “the EU’s closest partner in the Indo-Pacific,” a sentiment echoed by President von der Leyen, who described the two sides as “close and trusted friends” in recognition of their deepening partnership.
"Together we represent a fifth of the world's GDP. Our Economic Partnership Agreement is solid, and it delivers. This Summit is our chance to take the next steps: To strengthen our joint competitiveness, enhance our common security, and set global standards aligned with our values," - she stated.
Von der Leyen said the EU and Japan would seek to strengthen economic security.
"We will also work more closely together to counter economic coercion and to address unfair trade practices," she said, adding later: "We believe in global competitiveness and it should benefit everyone."
Ishiba told reporters that the EU and Japan would work to maintain and strengthen a rules-based, free and fair economic order.
The leaders committed to enhance joint competitiveness and reduce strategic dependencies, particularly through the newly launched Competitiveness Alliance, as well as to deepen cooperation in several key areas, including defence and space, critical raw materials, energy, digital transformaiton, research and innovation, critical and emerging technologies, including semiconductors.
Ishiba added that the EU and Japan had agreed to work to strengthen the defence industry and to start talks for an information security agreement.
"In the field of security, we agreed to cooperate to launch a defense industry dialogue to strengthen the defense industrial base, which is a priority for both sides, and to begin official negotiations on a Japan-EU information security agreement," Ishiba said.
The EU and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to addressing common global challenges and advancing their security and defence partnership. Areas of cooperation include cybersecurity, hybrid threats—particularly foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI)—space security, disarmament, non-proliferation, peace and security agenda.
In this context, the leaders underscored the importance of maritime security, highlighting the need to ensure freedom of navigation and protection of critical undersea infrastructure, in line with international law.
A joint statement also noted that both sides aim to strengthen cooperation under the EU–Japan Digital Partnership and Green Alliance, with a focus on advancing the circular economy and supporting decarbonisation efforts.
"Recognising the triple global crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, the leaders also expressed their support for the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal global biodiversity framework, as well as their commitment to contribute to a successful outcome of COP30 so as to keep the 1.5 ⁰C goal within reach," - the statement reads.
U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to make the Strait of Hormuz part of U.S. territory have been mocked by Iran's Deputy Foreign Ministe...
Five years ago today, Taliban fighters entered Kabul, completing a rapid takeover of Afghanistan as the former government collapsed....
For fishermen along Pakistan’s southwestern coast, the consequences of the U.S.-Iran conflict are being felt far from the battlefield....
Hundreds of flights have been cancelled or rerouted at Catania Airport over the past week as ash from Mount Etna’s ongoing eruption continues to disrupt air travel in Sicily.
Wildfires across England and Wales have reached their highest level on record, according to the National Fire Chiefs Council, as firefighters struggle to contain outbreaks following a spell of extreme heat.
The U.S. will impose unprecedented measures on Iran in order to economically isolate the country, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said.
U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to make the Strait of Hormuz part of U.S. territory have been mocked by Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, who said the sea passage "cannot be seized by tweet."
At least 47 people have been killed after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off eastern Indonesia early on Saturday, triggering small tsunami waves and dozens of aftershocks, officials say.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised deepening ties with North Korea, saying Moscow and Pyongyang are coordinating their efforts to ensure “regional security and stability”.
Russia and Ukraine traded large-scale overnight attacks targeting energy, industrial and military facilities on Saturday, with a three-month-old baby killed and 11 people injured in a Russian drone strike on a residential building in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region.
At least 47 people have been killed after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off eastern Indonesia early on Saturday, triggering small tsunami waves and dozens of aftershocks, officials say.
Jason Arday, the former University of Cambridge professor at the centre of a plagiarism row, has been found dead. He was appointed Cambridge's youngest ever Black professor in 2023, but quit on 5 August, after being accused of lifting passages from his PhD from the work of other academics.
Wildfires across England and Wales have reached their highest level on record, according to the National Fire Chiefs Council, as firefighters struggle to contain outbreaks following a spell of extreme heat.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment