Japan’s top diplomat may have flown to Manila to tackle heavyweight geo-political issues but also wanted to get a feel of the traffic-choked city’s daily grind – she took a train ride.
Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa flew to Manila on Sunday, a day ahead of a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the signing of a landmark defense agreement with the Philippines, the Reciprocal Access Agreement or RAA which will allow military personnel from both countries to hold joint military trainings in each other’s country.
The 71-year-old hit the ground running in Manila. On Sunday, she visited the site of the Japan-funded Metro Manila Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3, which Japan has supported with its official development assistance or ODA for its rehabilitation project.
She then took a 30-minute ride in the Japanese-financed MRT train looking relaxed in white slacks and a blue blazer as she conversed with fellow Japanese officials inside an MRT coach.
In another picture provided by the Japanese Embassy, Kamikawa is seen talking to a smiling Filipina officer of the train system with the blue and white train in the background.
Japanese Ambassador Endo Kazuya said she enjoyed the ride from North Avenue to Ayala during off-peak hour with commonfolk passengers in other coaches.
“Full speed ahead towards progress!” Kazuya said on X. “Sharing FM Kamikawa’s excitement riding the new and improved MRT-3, along with the government of Japan’s commitment towards supporting more Philippines development projects in the future!”
Before Japan rehabilitated the 25-year-old MRT 3 line, trains suffered from glitches and breakdowns, causing delays, extended downtimes, and lengthy waiting times due to inadequate preventive maintenance.
On the same day, the Japanese diplomat visited Nippon Human Resources Foundation, Inc. (NHRFI), where she
had the chance to meet and speak before Filipino trainees bound for Japan.
She exchanged views with its president, Danilo Navarro, on the activities of the agency and the prospects for support for dispatching Filipino human resources to Japan and other countries.
Kamikawa spoke highly of Filipinos working in Japan, who she said “strongly support the Japanese economy” and for NHRFI’s longstanding contribution to developing Filipino human resources.
In a bilateral meeting with Philippine counterpart Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo on Monday, Kamikawa stated that it was her pleasure to visit the Philippines for the first time in two years as Foreign Minister of Japan.
Kamikawa expressed her desire to promote bilateral trade and investment relations and stated that Japan would continue to help the Philippines achieve upper middle-income country status, citing Japan’s assistance for infrastructure development, such as the MRT Line 3.
She likewise highlighted the importance of cooperating closely with the Philippines “toward maintaining and strengthening the free and open international order based on the rule of law.”
Kamikawa said Japan was committed to promoting bilateral security and defense cooperation based on the Japan-Philippines Reciprocal Access Agreement.
“We hope to build on this achievement based on this foundation to further strengthen security and defense cooperation between our two countries,” she said.
Japan, she added, seeks to bolster bilateral relations in a wide range of areas, such as on economy, people-to-people exchange, and various regional and international issues as Manila and Tokyo are slated to mark seven decades of diplomatic relations in 2026.
Kamikawa graduated from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University with a Master’s degree in Public Policy and was first elected to the House of Representatives for the first time during the 42nd General Election in Shizuoka 1st Electoral District in 2000.
Before becoming Japan’s Foreign Minister, she served as the Minister of Justice from September 2020 to October 2021 and also served as Minister of State for Gender Equality and Social Affairs in the cabinets of Shinzo Abe and Yasuo Fukuda.
Despite her high-level official work, Kamikawa makes sure she keeps fit in her downtime with her hobbies including radio calisthenics, ground golf, nihon-buyo or traditional Japanese dance, and knitting. —NB, GMA Integrated News
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