By Rachna Uppal
ABU DHABI (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Monday for the second stop of a Gulf tour focused on securing energy supplies and offering Japanese green technology.
Kishida is expected to meet with Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and to attend a UAE-Japan business forum in Abu Dhabi, officials said. Kishida is expected to travel to major gas-producer Qatar on Tuesday.
Japan is actively developing greener and renewable energy technologies and aims to be carbon neutral by 2050. Kishida will also try to promote Japanese know-how as energy-producing countries, especially ahead of the COP28 climate summit to be held in Dubai in November.
His UAE visit follows a stop in Saudi Arabia on Sunday in which Riyadh said it remained committed to securing oil supplies for Japan and will continue cooperating with Tokyo on clean hydrogen, ammonia and recycled carbon fuels.
Tokyo and Riyadh are also set to start a new strategic dialogue at the foreign minister level – a move both leaders welcomed in their summit meeting, according to a statement released by the Japanese foreign ministry on Monday.
“Both leaders agreed to further energise exchanges, which cover politics, diplomacy, and security, between the two countries,” the statement said.
Previously state oil giant Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has said that Japan imports approximately 25% of its crude oil from the UAE, making it ADNOC’s largest international importer of oil and gas products.
“The secure energy supply from the UAE has supported Japan’s economic growth for many years,” Kishida wrote in an piece published by UAE state news agency WAM on Sunday.
A senior official at Japan’s foreign ministry told reporters this week that Kishida plans to discuss energy markets during his trip, while also aiming to offer Japanese technologies for net zero transition.
(Reporting by Rachna Uppal and Sakura Murakami in Tokyo; Writing by Andrew Mills; Editing by Conor Humphries)
