Japanese prime minister due in Israel Tuesday

Shinzo Abe Photo: Reuters
Shinzo Abe Photo: Reuters

Shinzo Abe is meeting with Mahmoud Abbas today and Benjamin Netanyahu tomorrow.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is landing today in Israel and will travel directly to Ramallah for a meeting with Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas. He will dine there and then go to the King David Hotel in Jerusalem. Tomorrow, he will visit the Jericho Agro Industrial Park, where Japan has invested money in the development of water enterprises for the Palestinians.

Abe will then meet and lunch with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his office in Jerusalem, followed by an official dinner at the Prime Minister's residence, after which he will take off from Ben Gurion Airport. Netanyahu will undoubtedly discuss with Abe the latest current affairs and the intelligence display about Iran that he presented to the world on Monday. Japan is a very important trade partner of Iran, from which the Japanese buy oil and gas, like many other countries.

This is Abe's second visit to Israel. His first visit in 2015 is remembered as traumatic, because at Abe's press conference with the Japanese and Israeli media in Jerusalem, just a few minutes before it began, Abe was notified that a Japanese journalist had been kidnapped by ISIS. The press conference was delayed by an hour, but Abe then appeared before the media and continued his visit to Israel according to the scheduled timetable. ISIS executed the journalist a day later, filmed the event, and broadcast it.

Israel and Japan have extensive business ties. According to Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute figures, bilateral Israel-Japan trade totaled $2.8 billion in 2017, 6% less than in 2016. Exports of goods from Israel to Japan amounted to $780 million. Israel's exports to Japan include chemicals, cosmetics, testing and processing systems and equipment for the electronics components industry, and medical and surgical equipment. Japan is the fourth largest destination for Israeli exports of goods in Asia.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 1, 2018

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2018

Shinzo Abe Photo: Reuters
Shinzo Abe Photo: Reuters
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