Japan PM Kishida En Route to Kyiv for Meeting with Ukraine Prez Zelensky

curated by, Shankhneel Sarkar

Last Update: March 21, 2023, 09:43 AM IST

Tokyo/Kiev/New Delhi/Warsaw

Kishida is on his way to Kiev for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (Image: AP Photo)

Kishida is on his way to Kiev for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (Image: AP Photo)

The sudden visit to Ukraine comes soon after his visit to India, where he met his counterpart Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Kishida will host G7 leaders in Hiroshima in May but is the only leader in the group who has not visited post-war Ukraine

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is on his way to Ukraine to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Kishida is the only G7 leader who did not visit Ukraine and left for Kiev on Tuesday to meet with his Ukrainian counterpart.

Japan will host the G7 summit in Hiroshima this year.

according to a report by associated PressThe Japanese prime minister was seen taking a train from Warsaw in Poland to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.

His visit to Kiev comes a day after his visit to India where he met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed India-Japan bilateral relations and their vision for the Indo-Pacific.

associated Press The report also stated that Kishida was facing internal pressure from political parties in Japan regarding not visiting Kiev.

Japan has imposed similar sanctions on Russia and has followed the path of its Western allies (except for some investments such as Sakhalin energy projects).

During his visit, Kishida is expected to tell Zelensky that Japan stands in solidarity with Ukraine and will offer continued support for Ukraine.

report by associated Press It is also said that Kishida is the first Japanese post-war leader to enter an active war zone. Kishida denied speculation of a possible trip to Kiev in late March but on Tuesday he was seen boarding a train from Warsaw, the Japanese news agency reported. NHK informed of.

Due to Japan’s pacifist principles, its support for Ukraine has been limited to non-combative military equipment. It has sent helmets, bulletproof vests and humanitarian supplies including drones and generators to Kiev but no weapons.

It has contributed more than $7 billion to Ukraine and has accepted and supported 2,000 displaced Ukrainians by providing housing assistance and support for jobs and education. Japan took these rare steps despite being known for having a strict immigration policy.

Japan has supported Ukraine because of China’s growing clout in the South China Sea and its desire to control the Indo-Pacific region.

Japan expressed its opposition to China’s efforts to reunite self-ruled Taiwan with the “motherland” and fears that a Ukraine-like situation could develop in the region, which would threaten peace and destabilize the regional and global economy. Can do

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