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H.E. Akira Imamura, Ambassador of Japan to Serbia

A Glimpse Into the Future

Under the main theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives”, the Japanese World exhibition will present the diversity of life, the existence of life in connection with other lives, and the fact that life exists in a cycle of destruction and regeneration ~ Akira Imamura

Bilateral relations between Japan and Serbia continued to strengthen in 2024, thanks to a strategy that Ambassador Akira Imamura describes as “people-to-people exchange”. Apart from the holding of significant meetings at a high political level, the two countries are also strengthening their economic cooperation. Interest in investing in Serbia is on the rise among Japanese companies, which in Serbia have found “a favourable investment environment, cost competitiveness, excellent human resources and strong government support”.

Speaking in this interview for CorD Magazine, Ambassador Imamura explains his personal belief that “the increase in investment by Japanese companies is also related to the nearshoring that is taking place, where companies are producing closer to the EU market in order to avoid supply chain risks.”

Your Excellency, the Japanese city of Osaka will host World Expo 2025 from April to October next year. What lies behind its central theme: “Designing Future Society for Our Lives”? What is the significance of holding this event in Osaka, and Japan as a whole?

— Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, will be a place where you can experience in advance the kind of future society that will emerge as we pursue the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. It should become a platform for jointly creating the future with the 161 participating countries, including Serbia.

Under the main theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives”, this Japanese exposition will present the diversity of life, the existence of life in connection with other lives, and the fact that life exists in a cycle of destruction and regeneration. This is actually a traditional way of thinking in Japan, and we hope it will evoke a sense of empathy among people around the world.

When it comes to Japan-Serbia bilateral relations, could it be said that they were enhanced even further in 2024 thanks to the first visit of a Japanese foreign minister to Serbia in five years?

— Last year was a year of increased people-to-people exchange between our two countries. It was particularly significant that then Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa visited Serbia and held the first foreign ministerial meeting in five years with Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić, as the international order was facing severe challenges. During that meeting, the ministers held a frank discussion on the development of bilateral relations, stability in the Western Balkans, as well as cooperation in maintaining and strengthening the international order based on the rule of law.

Minister Kamikawa stated that, in order for the Western Balkan region, which has experienced numerous conflicts, to continue to develop strongly and enjoy peace and stability in the future, it is important to further promote regional cooperation, as well as EU integration. With this in mind, she also conveyed to Minister Đurić that Japan is promoting the two pillars of the “Western Balkans Cooperation Initiative”, i.e., support for socioeconomic reforms that advance EU accession, and reconciliation and accommodation efforts around the region.

The media reported with great interest that the head of Japan’s diplomacy also visited Pristina, the first visit since Japan’s decision to recognise Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence. Does this signal a new phase of Japan’s engagement in the region?

— Regarding the Kosovo issue, Japan has been supporting a solution through the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue mediated by the EU. Progress in this dialogue on the normalisation of relations between the two sides is the key to progressing on the “Path to Europe” for both sides, and to this end it is important that the parties concerned work properly, and in good faith, to fulfil their respective obligations, including the establishment of the Community of Serb majority Municipalities in Kosovo.

Minister Yoko Kamikawa visited Serbia and held the first foreign ministerial meeting in five years with Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić, as the international order was facing severe challenges

Last July, Minister Kamikawa became the first Japanese foreign minister to visit Kosovo after Serbia, in order to demonstrate Japan’s renewed commitment to help seek reconciliation among the parties. She conveyed Japan’s thinking directly to the Kosovo side and expressed strong expectations of the Kosovo government’s leadership in this regard. However, Japan remains concerned about the situation on the ground. Fomenting distrust is not a constructive approach. We solicit all parties to refrain from any actions that could lead to further tension and escalation. It is ordinary people who suffer from the consequences of such actions.

Japan and Serbia entered the new year with a bilateral Investment Protection Agreement, which the two countries agreed to start negotiating last year. What is the significance of this agreement when it comes to economic exchanges between the two countries?

— Investments in Serbia by Japanese companies have been increasing in recent years, particularly in the automotive sector. This is because Japanese companies appreciate Serbia’s favourable investment environment, cost competitiveness, excellent human resources and strong government support. I believe that the increase in investment by Japanese companies is also related to the nearshoring that is taking place, where companies are producing closer to the EU market in order to avoid supply chain risks.

BEAUTY IN THE DELICATE CHANGES OF NATURE

Your Excellency, the exhibition Flowers and Birds: Four Seasons in Japan, staged at Belgrade’s Madeleine Palace of Art, showcased paintings from your personal collection, including works created in the Nihonga style depicting flowers and birds on silk and Washi paper. How did the public respond to the exhibition, and what impact do you hope it will have on their understanding of Japanese culture?

The word “nihonga” literally means “Japanese painting” and refers to paintings using traditional Japanese techniques. Nihonga artists have found beauty in the delicate changes of nature that occur with the change of seasons. They also used a technique that evoked the viewer’s imagination by leaving certain areas in the painting where nothing was depicted (yohaku). There were over 100 visitors on the first day of the exhibition, which showed that there is a high level of interest in traditional Japanese art. I am very happy that they were able to deepen their understanding of the Japanese aesthetic sense that places importance on seasonal changes, and to experience the sense of space created by yohaku.

Of late, we are witnessing a new move by some Japanese companies to build a supply chain in Serbia between themselves. This will send a positive message to other Japanese companies that are considering coming to Serbia. In light of these developments, the two countries agreed at last year’s meeting of their respective foreign ministers to launch negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty. If concluded, it is expected to further promote investment through the protection of investors’ rights.

The first facility in Serbia to use waste to generate electricity was opened in Vinča, near Belgrade, in late 2024, creating company Beo Čista Energija that was co-founded by Japanese firm Itochu. Are you satisfied with what you saw at the opening? What should we expect over the next two decades of this partnership?

— This Japan-French joint project contributes to environmental protection and the transition to a green economy in Serbia – not only by controlling the huge landfill of Belgrade’s household waste, but also by providing citizens with electricity and heat produced by the waste. With this unique feature, BCE (Beo Čista Energija) has set a new standard for this region and beyond in many areas. However, growth and urbanisation continue to pose complex challenges to waste management. With Japan’s eco-friendly technology and management knowhow, backed by our traditional “mottainai”, or too good to waste, attitude, I hope that we will be able to contribute further, together with our partners, to achieving our common goal of a circular economy in Serbia. The Embassy is ready to facilitate this partnership as we move to the next step.

This year marks seven years since former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched the “Western Balkans Initiative”, which promotes reforms in Serbia and encourages regional cooperation across the Western Balkans. What could you say about its impact?

— Seven years have passed since Prime Minister Abe announced this initiative, and the effectiveness of its two pillars has not changed. At the same time, we need to update our cooperation policy in line with Serbia’s economic development and progress in regional cooperation among the Western Balkan countries, and we hope to revise the policy for the next few years in the near future. With regard to the first pillar – cooperation in the area of innovation, including support for start-ups – transition to a green economy and support for decarbonisation will become increasingly important in promoting structural reforms in Serbia, which has become a middle-income country. As for the second pillar – the promotion of regional cooperation – we would like to focus on the tourism sector and on balanced development through cooperation among local governments.

The end of 2024 was marked by new instabilities in Japan’s neighbourhood. Apart from longstanding tensions with North Korea, the region was also rocked by the abrupt change of government in South Korea. How do you see future developments on the Korean Peninsula?

— The security environment surrounding Japan has become most severe and complicated in the postwar period. In addition to the situation in the East China Sea and South China Sea, the question of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and increased military activities by neighbouring countries, we are seriously concerned about the development of nuclear and missile activities by North Korea and its military cooperation with Russia. The issue of the abduction of Japanese citizens by North Korea remains unresolved.

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya shared these concerns with his South Korean counterpart in January and the two ministers confirmed that, under the current strategic environment, the importance of bilateral relations remains unchanged. They reaffirmed their commitment to continue to work closely together bilaterally, as well as under the Japan-U.S.-ROK (Republic of Korea) framework. During Minister Iwaya’s meeting with new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the same month, the two ministers also agreed to work together to continue elevating the Japan-U.S. Alliance to new heights in order to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific.

KOSOVO

We solicit all parties to refrain from any actions that could lead to further tension and escalation. It is ordinary people who suffer from the consequences of such actions

INVESTMENTS

Of late, we are witnessing a new move by some Japanese companies to build a supply chain in Serbia between themselves

CONCERN

We are seriously concerned about the development of nuclear and missile activities by North Korea and its military cooperation with Russia

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