Japan and Kuwait promote Middle East peace
Ambassador of Japan to Kuwait
Peace and stability in the Middle East are extremely important to Japan and to the world. Since the beginning of the recent crisis which started on June 13th in the region, Japan has consistently called on all concerned parties to exercise maximum restraint and to work toward de-escalation. Prime Minister Ishiba emphasized the importance of diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the situation and to resolve Iran's nuclear issue during the G7 Summit meeting on June 16th. Japan sincerely hopes that the ceasefire agreement reached on June 24th will be faithfully implemented and will lead to reopening the path to dialogue with regard to Iran's nuclear issue.
As the only country in the world that suffered atomic bombings, Japan has actively worked to strengthen the international nuclear non-proliferation regime. Japan has taken various opportunities to share the Japanese position with the countries concerned, including (Zionist entity), and urge those countries to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). In the meantime, Japan has consistently expressed serious concern over Iran's nuclear issue, reaffirming that Iran's development of nuclear weapons must never be allowed for the sake of maintaining the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.
Japan and Kuwait share and always emphasize the importance of diplomacy. Amid the increasingly complex Middle East situation, Japan places great importance on its long-standing friendship with Kuwait. Kuwait, as a trusted mediator and advocate for dialogue in the Gulf region, has played a prominent role. During the recent crisis, Kuwait took proactive diplomatic steps as the Chair of the GCC. This leadership deserves high praise.
In May 2025, when His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled visited Japan and held talks with Prime Minister Ishiba, Minister Ishiba expressed his respect for Kuwait's significant role in promoting regional peace and stability as GCC Chair, and both sides reaffirmed their commitment to cooperating toward long-term peace and stability in the region. As the Ambassador of Japan to the State of Kuwait, I hope to make efforts to strengthen cooperation between Japan and Kuwait towards rebuilding trust in the region through dialogue.
Under the framework of the 'Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,' which was announced during His Highness's visit, Japan will expand its cooperation with Kuwait in a wide range of fields, in energy security, humanitarian assistance, and the promotion of international dialogue. Kuwait's extensive diplomatic experience and regional influence enable it to serve as a valuable partner to Japan's diplomatic efforts. Military confrontation only breeds distrust and destruction, which is not the future we seek. Based on the strong Japan-Kuwait relationship, Japan will continue working together with Kuwait, the current GCC Chair, to make constructive contributions to peace and prosperity in the Middle East, guided by mutual respect and cooperation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Kuwait Times
10 hours ago
- Kuwait Times
Zionists approve Gaza City conquest, W Bank settlement
GAZA/JERUSALEM: The Zionist defense minister approved a plan on Wednesday for the conquest of Gaza City and authorized the call-up of around 60,000 reservists, piling pressure on Hamas as mediators push for a ceasefire. Defense Minister Israel Katz's move, confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson, came as mediators awaited an official Zionist response on their latest proposal in ceasefire talks. While mediator Qatar had expressed guarded optimism over the latest proposal, a senior Zionist official said the government stood firm on its call for the release of all hostages in any agreement. The framework that Hamas had approved proposes an initial 60-day truce, a staggered hostage release, the freeing of some Palestinian prisoners and provisions allowing for the entry of aid into Gaza. In the West Bank, the Zionist entity on Wednesday approved a major settlement project in an area that the international community has warned threatens the viability of a future Palestinian state. The Palestinian Authority swiftly condemned the approval 'in the strongest terms', saying it entrenched division in the territory. On the ground in Gaza City on Wednesday, Mustafa Qazzaat, head of the emergency committee in the Gaza municipality, described the situation as 'catastrophic', with 'large numbers' fleeing eastern neighborhoods. One resident, Anis Daloul, 64, said the Zionist military had 'destroyed most of the buildings in Zeitoun and displaced thousands of people'. The Zionist entity's security cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the plan to conquer Gaza City in early August, sparking fears it would worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. According to Zionist media reports, Netanyahu has not yet called a security cabinet meeting to discuss any response to the latest truce proposal. GAZA: Palestinians rush for cover as smoke billows after a Zionist strike on a building in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Aug 20, 2025. - AFP Netanyahu has come under growing pressure at home and abroad to end the war, with the German government saying on Wednesday that it 'rejects the escalation' of the Zionist entity's campaign. French President Emmanuel Macron said the offensive 'can only lead to a complete disaster for both peoples', warning it would 'drag the region into a permanent war'. Katz's approval of plans to conquer Gaza City came days after Hamas said it had accepted the latest proposal from mediators for a ceasefire to halt almost two years of devastating war. Sources from Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad told AFP on Wednesday that the proposal envisages the release of 10 hostages and 18 bodies from Gaza. The remaining captives would be released in a second exchange within the 60-day period, during which negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place, the sources said. A Zionist military official told journalists on Wednesday that the new phase of combat would involve 'a gradual precise and targeted operation in and around Gaza City', including some areas where forces had not previously operated. Gaza's civil defense agency said Zionist strikes and fire killed at least 25 people across the territory on Wednesday. The Zionist military said it killed 10 Hamas militants in southern Gaza on Wednesday while repelling an attack by the armed wing of the Islamist group, which claimed it killed several Zionist soldiers. The Zionist offensive in Gaza has killed at least 62,122 Palestinians, most of them civilians. Meanwhile, the Zionist entity approved a major settlement project on Wednesday in an area of the occupied West Bank that the international community has warned threatens the viability of a future Palestinian state. The Zionist entity has long had ambitions to build on the roughly 12-square-kilometre parcel known as E1 just east of Jerusalem, but the plan had been stalled for years amid international opposition. Critics say the settlement would effectively cut the West Bank in two, undermining hopes for a contiguous Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. Last week, Zionist far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich backed plans to build around 3,400 homes on the ultra-sensitive tract of land, which lies between Jerusalem and the Zionist settlement of Maale Adumim. 'I am pleased to announce that just a short while ago, the civil administration approved the planning for the construction of the E1 neighborhood,' the mayor of Maale Adumim, Guy Yifrach, said in a statement Wednesday. The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority swiftly slammed the move. 'This undermines the chances of implementing the two-state solution, establishing a Palestinian state on the ground, and fragments its geographic and demographic unity,' the PA's foreign ministry said in a statement. It added the move would entrench 'division of the occupied West Bank into isolated areas and cantons that are disconnected from one another, turning them into something akin to real prisons, where movement is only possible through (Zionist) checkpoints and under the terror of armed settler militias'. All of the Zionist entity's settlements in the West Bank, occupied since 1967, are considered illegal under international law, regardless of whether they have Zionist planning permission. The Zionist entity heavily restricts the movement of West Bank Palestinians, who must obtain permits from authorities to travel through checkpoints to cross into east Jerusalem or the Zionist entity. King Abdullah II of Jordan on Wednesday also affirmed his country's rejection of the E1 project, saying 'the two-state solution is the only way to achieve a just and comprehensive peace'. UN chief Antonio Guterres warned last week that constructing Zionist homes in the E1 area would 'put an end to' hopes for a two-state solution to the Zionist-Palestinian conflict. Aviv Tatarsky, a researcher at Ir Amim, an NGO focusing on Jerusalem within the context of the Zionist-Palestinian conflict, also condemned the move. 'Today's approval demonstrates how determined (the Zionist entity) is in pursuing what Minister Smotrich has described as a strategic program to bury the possibility of a Palestinian state and to effectively annex the West Bank,' he said. 'This is a conscious (Zionist) choice to implement an apartheid regime,' he added, calling on the international community to take urgent and effective measures against the move. Excluding east Jerusalem, the West Bank is home to around three million Palestinians, as well as about 500,000 Zionist settlers. – Agencies
Kuwait Times
10 hours ago
- Kuwait Times
Most Americans for recognizing Palestine: Poll
WASHINGTON: A 58 percent majority of Americans believe that every country in the United Nations should recognize Palestine as a nation, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. Some 33 percent of respondents did not agree that UN members should recognize a Palestinian state and 9 percent did not answer. The six-day poll, which closed on Monday, found a pronounced partisan divide on the issue, with 78 percent of Democrats supporting the idea, far more than the 41 percent of President Donald Trump's Republicans who agreed. A narrow 53 percent majority of Republicans did not agree that all UN member nations should recognize a Palestinian state. The Zionist entity has long counted on the US, its most powerful ally, for billions of dollars a year in military aid and international diplomatic support. An erosion of US public support would be a worrisome sign for the Zionist entity as it continues waging an expensive war on Gaza. The cost of the entity's genocidal war, which killed more than 62,000 Palestinians had reached $42 billion as of mid-January 2024, Zionist newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that month. Support for aid The poll was taken within weeks of three countries, close US allies Canada, Britain and France, announcing they intend to recognize a Palestinian state, increasing pressure on the Zionist entity. Britain, Canada, Australia and several of their European allies said last week that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached 'unimaginable levels,' as aid groups warned that Gazans are on the verge of famine due to the Zionist entity's restrictions on aid. The United Nations human rights office said on Tuesday the entity was not letting enough supplies into the Gaza Strip to avert widespread starvation. Some 65 percent of the Reuters/Ipsos poll respondents said, the US should take action in Gaza to help people facing starvation, with 28 percent disagreeing. The number disagreeing included 41 percent of Republicans. Trump and many of his fellow Republicans take an 'America First' approach to international relations, backing steep cuts to the country's international food and medical assistance programs in the belief that US funds should assist Americans, not those outside its borders. The Reuters/Ipsos poll also showed that 59 percent of Americans believe the Zionist entity's military attacks in Gaza have been excessive. Thirty-three percent of respondents disagreed. In a similar Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in February 2024, 53 percent of respondents agreed that the entity's response had been excessive, and 42 percent disagreed. Officials at the Zionist embassy in Washington and mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the poll. The latest Reuters/Ipsos survey, conducted online, gathered responses from 4,446 US adults nationwide and had a margin of error of about two percentage points. — Reuters
Kuwait Times
17 hours ago
- Kuwait Times
Arab-Japanese Youth Forum strengthens cultural dialogue
Young participants exchange views and promote cultural rapprochement CAIRO: The Arab-Japanese Youth Forum: Bridges of Dialogue and Culture kicked off Wednesday at the Arab League headquarters, bringing together young participants to exchange views and promote cultural rapprochement. The event was organized in cooperation with the Japanese Embassy in Cairo. In his opening remarks, Arab League Assistant Secretary General for Administrative and Financial Affairs Ambassador Mohammad Al-Ajery said the League attaches great importance to fostering international dialogue and cooperation. He noted that the League has established several cooperation forums and memoranda of understanding with countries, international organizations and regional blocs, reflecting its commitment to strengthening relations with global partners. Al-Ajery highlighted the longstanding cooperation between Arab countries and Japan, which dates back to the launch of the Arab-Japanese Economic Forum in 2009 and the establishment of ministerial-level political dialogue in 2013. That year also saw the signing of a memorandum of cooperation between the Arab League and the Japanese government to encourage dialogue between civilizations and promote intellectual and cultural exchange. The Arab-Japanese Youth Forum kicks off at the Arab League.- KUNA photos He added that the League Council, in its 163rd ministerial session held in April 2025, reaffirmed the determination of member states to enhance ties with Japan in political, economic, social and cultural fields. Within this framework, the current forum was convened to introduce Arab and Japanese youth to each other's cultures and deepen mutual understanding. For his part, Japanese Ambassador to Cairo Fumio Iwai stressed that cultural dialogue among youth complements political and economic cooperation, helping to strengthen relations between Japan and the Arab world at the grassroots level. 'We believe that youth will lead future generations towards a bright future,' he said. Iwai also addressed regional developments, describing the humanitarian situation in Gaza as 'extremely harsh.' He praised the Arab League's efforts to improve conditions in the Strip and push for a ceasefire and the establishment of a Palestinian state. The envoy reiterated Japan's firm support for a two-state solution and said Tokyo has provided $230 million in humanitarian aid to Palestine since October 2023, including assistance to the Palestinian Authority, health care and food relief. The forum's agenda includes discussions on 'Youth and Cultural Diversity: Confronting Stereotypes,' exploring challenges in intercultural interaction, the role of education in fostering tolerance, and the impact of art, culture and social media in bridging societies. Participants are expected to put forward recommendations to strengthen communication between Arab and Japanese youth. Cultural activities accompanying the forum feature traditional Japanese demonstrations, including tea ceremony and Ikebana flower arrangement, alongside Arab cultural showcases prepared by youth trainees at the Arab League's General Secretariat. - KUNA
