In May 2024, Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio made the first official visit to Brazil by a Japanese prime minister in a decade. There, he held a Summit meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, with whom he concurred on the importance of enhancing cooperation as Strategic and Global Partners to uphold the rule of law and to ensure a world where human dignity is secured.
Prime Minister Kishida met with Brazilian President Lula for a Summit meeting and said Japan will strengthen cooperation with Brazil, which holds the G20 presidency this year, working together for the success of the G20 Rio de Janeiro Summit.
Japan and Brazil established diplomatic relations in 1895 with the signing of the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation. Since then, the two countries have built historic friendship ties and strong human bonds. On May 3 and 4, 2024, Prime Minister Kishida visited Brazil to take Japan-Brazil relations to new heights. In the country’s capital, Brasilia, he held a Summit meeting with President Lula and discussed a wide range of issues, from security, the economy, trade, and investment to climate change solutions and energy.
Prime Minister Kishida stated that Japan will strengthen cooperation with Brazil, which holds the G20 presidency this year, working together for the success of the G20 Rio de Janeiro Summit. The two leaders concurred on the importance of enhancing cooperation as Strategic and Global Partners to uphold the rule of law and to ensure a world where human dignity is secured.
In light of the 30th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) to be held in Belem, Brazil, next year, the two leaders launched the Japan-Brazil Green Partnership Initiative (GPI), aiming at taking cooperation on the environment, climate change measures, and sustainable development to an even higher level. (Full text: Joint Statement on the Brazil-Japan Partnership Initiative on Environment, Climate, Sustainable Development and Resilient Economies)
Furthermore, the two leaders concurred on establishing the Initiative for Sustainable Fuel and Mobility (ISFM) as a new international framework to contribute to global carbon neutrality by linking Brazil’s highly promising biofuels, e-fuels, and other decarbonized fuels with innovative Japanese technology, such as hybrid engines.
Concerning the economy, the two leaders affirmed the importance of strengthening relations between Japan and MERCOSUR, a customs union established in 1995 to eliminate tariffs within the region, as well as examining ways to enhance economic relations between them in a wide range of areas.
Prime Minister Kishida attended a welcome ceremony hosted by Nikkei (Japanese immigrants and descendants) communities in Sao Paulo, where he was welcomed by children.
In 2014, the Brazil-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership was established to encourage cooperation between these two countries, which share values and principles such as democracy and the rule of law. The two leaders celebrated the 10 years of the partnership and highlighted the historic friendly ties and strong human bonds between the two nations. The 2.7 million Japanese descendants living in Brazil constitute the largest Nikkei (immigrants from Japan and their descendants) community outside Japan, while Japan is home to the fifth-largest Brazilian community abroad, with more than 210,000 Brazilian residents. The two leaders designated the year 2025 as the “Japan-Brazil Friendship Exchange Year” on the occasion of the 130th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. They also confirmed that they would promote cooperation in various fields, including cultural, tourism, and sports exchanges.
At the University of Sao Paulo, Prime Minister Kishida delivered a speech on Japan’s foreign policy towards Latin America and the Caribbean, in which he announced that cooperation between Japan and countries in those regions is more important than ever to lead the world toward cooperation, and he outlined concrete directions to achieve this goal.
Prime Minister Kishida and President Lula issued a joint statement on the results of their discussions during the Japan-Brazil Summit meeting (Full text: Joint Statement on Further Strengthening the Brazil-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership). During a press conference in Sao Paulo, Prime Minister Kishida stated, “To work toward the fundamental common goal of upholding and strengthening the free and open international order based on the rule of law and ensuring a world where human dignity is secured, Japan will apply its distinctive diversity and inclusiveness in working closely with other countries, including Latin American and Caribbean countries.”
Japan will continue to make every effort in Summit diplomacy toward an international community characterized by cooperation, which Japan, as a nation of peace, is uniquely positioned to promote.
