New York: Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa is completing a busy debut overseas trip as Tokyo’s top diplomat without major problems on Friday.

While in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, Kamikawa made efforts to build trust with her counterparts from many nations, including Japan’s partners in the Group of Seven major democracies as well as so-called Global South developing countries.

On Thursday, Kamikawa held her first meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin since she took her current post last week. Kamikawa told Park that she is willing to communicate well with him in order to allow people in both countries to feel improved relations.

In separate talks on Thursday, Kamikawa obtained understanding from her counterparts from Canada, Portugal and Mexico of Japan’s release of tritium-containing treated water into the sea from its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.

On Friday, she attended a meeting of foreign ministers from the Quad grouping of Japan, the United States, Australia and India. Separately, she met with her counterpart from India, a self-proclaimed Global South leader.

In the meeting of the G-7 foreign ministers on Monday, Kamikawa led discussions on Ukraine. The meeting was held in a “friendly atmosphere,” a senior Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. Kamikawa told reporters after the meeting that she had been “warmly welcomed.”

The Japanese foreign minister also took part in an event of the Women, Peace and Security Focal Points Network, which calls for women’s participation in society and gender equality to resolve conflicts.

Kamikawa held bilateral talks with her counterparts from about 15 countries, including the United States, Ukraine, Brazil and Indonesia. “Kamikawa’s presence grew,” a senior Japanese Foreign Ministry official said.

She will face a host of diplomatic challenges, with an immediate focus on relations with China that have been strained due to the release of the treated water.

No meeting took place between Kamikawa and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in New York because he was absent.

Attention will now be on whether Japanese and Chinese leaders will meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in the United States in November, and whether a proposed trilateral summit of Japanese, Chinese and South Korean leaders will take place this year.

JIJI Press