SAO PAULO: Japanese Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio announced his policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean on Saturday, stressing the importance of economic ties based on trust, not on coercion, with China in mind.

In a speech delivered at the University of Sao Paulo, Kishida announced that Tokyo will back operations by Japanese companies doing business in the region, rich in food and other resources.

Regarding China’s growing influence over Latin America and the Caribbean through its massive financial resources, Kishida said, “It is economic relations based on trust, not the threat of force and coercion, that lead to fair prosperity.”

After saying that many countries around the world have fallen into a debt trap, Kishida stated that Japan will “advance economic activities by prioritizing the environment and human rights,” pledging to “achieve truly sustainable growth in collaboration with local communities.”

Although not mentioning China by name, Kishida said that “acts such as economic coercion, where economic pressure is exerted to compel certain actions, are totally unacceptable.”

The number of business bases set up by Japanese companies in Latin America and the Caribbean has increased by more than 1,000 over the past 10 years, he noted.

“By creating new industries and generating stable, high quality employment, the business activities of Japanese companies will contribute to eliminating disparities and poverty in the region,” he stated.

Kishida declared that Latin America and the Caribbean will be “irreplaceable partners” of Japan in achieving “a world caring for human dignity,” a vision he announced in a speech at the U.N. General Assembly last year.

He voiced hopes that the two sides will cooperate in securing international order based on the rule of law, resolving climate change and other common issues for all humanity and pursuing prosperity that does not come at others’ expense.

He also announced that Japan will invite over 1,000 people from Latin America and the Caribbean over three years as part of exchange programs, in hopes of further deepening ties with 3.1 million “nikkei” Japanese immigrants and their descendants in the region.

Kishida was the first prime minister in 10 years to deliver a speech on Japan’s Latin American and Caribbean policy since then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe did so in Sao Paulo in 2014.

JIJI Press