From February 7 to 9, the Japan Office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation had the honor of welcoming a delegation of members of the German Bundestag, led by Dr. Johann Wadephul, Deputy Chairman of the Christian Democratic/ Social Union (CDU/CSU) parliamentary group, to Japan and provided them an opportunity to exchange views with Japanese members of parliament and experts.

The delegation was invited to the general assembly of the Japan-Germany Parliamentary Friendship League held on February 7 at the Diet Members’ Office Building, where they exchanged views with Japanese Diet members from the ruling and opposition parties, including Hon. Toshiaki Endo, Chairperson of the Friendship League. More than 50 Japanese parliamentarians attended the assembly and actively exchanged opinions on a wide range of topics, including not only German-Japanese foreign, security, and defense policy, but also human rights due diligence and policy toward Africa, etc.

During the visit, the delegation members paid also courtesy calls on Hon. Yoko Kamikawa, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Hon. Minoru Kihara, Minister of Defense, and confirmed the importance of strengthening Japan-German cooperation in security and defense fields in the face of the unstable international situation, referring to Japan-Germany contribution to the Indo-Pacific region and the ACSA. In an exchange of views with Hon. Shintaro Ito, Minister of the Environment, the theme of the meeting was the international approaches of Japan and Germany as advanced nations in addressing environmental and climate issues.

Meetings were also held with Mr. Kiyoto Tsuji, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon. Hiroshi Moriyama, Chairperson of the General Council of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and Hon. Kenta Izumi, President of the Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP), to discuss the political situation in Japan and Germany and the future of Japan-Germany cooperation, particularly in the security and defense fields.