For the first time in 106 years of bilateral relations, Japan’s prime minister conducted an official visit to Colombia on Monday to discuss investment.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was received at the Catam Military Airport in Bogota by Colombia’s Foreign Minister, Maria Angela Holguin. The ambassadors of both countries, Kazuo Watanabe and Roberto Velez Vallejo, also accompanied Holguin in receiving Prime Minister Abe.
Shinzo Abe came to Colombia for a high level visit with President Juan Manuel Santos to discuss security cooperation and investment in the country.
The high level government meeting is also being conducting with delegations from the Colombian and Japanese private sector with the goal of increasing Japanese investment in Colombia, according to a government press release.
MORE: Congress approves agreement to promote investment between Colombia and Japan
Abe is on a Latin American tour of Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Chile and Brazil. The Japanese Prime Minister is expected to leave on Wednesday and continue his tour in Chile.
The visit to Latin America, which hasn’t been done by a Japanese Prime Minister in over a decade, shows the dedication of Abe to increase Japan’s bilateral relations and international presence.
According to the Financial Times, Abe is attempting to sell Japan to a Latin America that has been all but dominated by China. Abe will focus on promoting Japan’s energy and shipbuilding sector and acquiring oil and gas to cover the energy shortfalls caused by the closure of nuclear plants after the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Sources
- Primer Ministro de Japón, Shinzo Abe, llegó en visita oficial a Colombia (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores)
- Por primera vez en la historia, un Primer Ministro japonés visita Colombia (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores)
- Globe-trotting Shinzo Abe sells Japan to a China-obsessed world (Financial Times)
