Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is embarking on a four-day visit to Tokyo today, following an invitation from the Japanese government. The visit marks the revival of leadership-level contacts between Pakistan and Japan after a significant gap.
During the visit, Bilawal will engage in delegation-level talks with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and hold a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. He is also scheduled to meet with Japanese National Security Adviser Takeo Akiba. Additionally, Bilawal is expected to interact with senior officials and representatives from prominent Japanese businesses and entities related to the import of Pakistani manpower to Japan. He will also be delivering a talk at the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), a renowned think tank in Japan.
The Foreign Office (FO) highlighted that Pakistan and Japan share a long-standing and time-tested relationship characterized by warmth, cordiality, and commonality of views on various issues.
Bilawal’s visit comes shortly after Foreign Secretary Dr. Asad Majeed Khan’s Bilateral Political Consultations with his Japanese counterpart, Shigeo Yamada, in Tokyo on Tuesday. Following the meeting, the Japanese side expressed goodwill and warm wishes towards Pakistan, looking forward to Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s upcoming visit.
Diplomatic ties between Japan and Pakistan were established in April 1952, and various high-level visits have taken place over the years to strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas such as human resource development, IT, tourism, and the automobile sector. In 2011, during the visit of then-President Asif Ali Zardari, both countries signed the Joint Statement on Japan-Pakistan Comprehensive Partnership.
