Support for Ukraine Based on Interest

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida joined a plenary meeting of Summit on Peace in Ukraine held in Switzerland, after attending the Group of Seven summit in Italy. While the main purpose of the summit was to draw a peaceful resolution in the war in Ukraine, Kishida insisted on reminding of the unstable security situation in Asia-Pacific region and Japan’s contribution in non-military support for Ukraine, having fallen short of mending the rift between the western nations and authoritarian regimes.

“The leaders of G7 and Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, reconfirmed four principles of the United Nations Charter, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, in G7 Hiroshima Summit last year, which I chaired,” said Kishida in his statement at the peace summit. “It is my pleasure that the representatives from over one hundred countries and international organizations have gathered here for peace in Ukraine, based on the discussion of Hiroshima.”

 

Kishida hoped peace in Ukraine as soon as possible, emphasizing necessity of lasting peace. “The peace must be ‘just and permanent peace’ based on the principles of international laws including UN Charter, not the one that justifies unilateral change of status quo by power or coercion,” said Kishida. “Unilateral change of status quo” is the phrase Kishida likes to use in the context of criticizing China’s advance to the Pacific. It is supposed that Kishida used those words to remind the audience of his idea that “Ukraine today is Asia tomorrow.”

 

Kishida meanwhile raised the importance of safety of nuclear power, regarding it as an urgent issue for people’s life. Russia still occupies one of the largest nuclear power plants in Europe, Zaporizhzhia Power Plant. It is likely that Kishida tried to introduce Japan’s advanced technology in nuclear power generation.

 

Kishida administration promotes restarting as much nuclear reactors in Japan, despite concerns on their safety after severe accident in Fukushima in 2011. Kishida’s statement sounded like appealing necessity of nuclear power generation to maintain or improve nuclear technology to support Ukraine.

 

Kishida also stressed Japan’s contribution in electric supply or demining, referring to the international meeting on demining Japan is hosting next year. Kishida called those efforts specific contributions of Japan.

 

Joint Communiqué of the summit listed three points for the peace, which were returning Zaporizhzhia plant to Ukraine, food security, and exchange of prisoners and returning kidnapped citizens. Japan needs to elaborate its own idea on those issues.

 

Russia and China did not join the summit. Brazil attended as an observer. It is obscure what kind of effort Kishida has made for the parties involved in this issue get together. As far as Kishida hoped to use diplomacy for boosting his ailing administration, he needed to get some more achievements.

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