EU and Japanese delegates meet for summit

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe for a summit meeting in Brussels.

The political leaders were joined by the European Commissioner for Trade, Karel De Gucht and European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn.

Ongoing negotiations regarding a strategic partnership agreement and a Free Trade Agreement, launched in April 2013, were at the centre of the summit’s agenda. Themes of the summit included developments in the respective neighbourhoods, the Post-2015 Development Framework, climate change and trade.

Commenting ahead of the summit, Barroso said: “A comprehensive strategic partnership agreement will provide us with a sound structure for deeper political, global and sectoral co-operation over the coming decades, and an ambitious free trade agreement will unleash the full potential of the trade and economic relationship between the EU and Japan, the world’s first and fourth economies.”

Global challenges, particularly international climate negotiations, as well as the global economic situation and G20 co-operation were also discussed.

An agreement on co-operation in science and technology, in force since March 2011, was debated. Priority areas for reinforced co-operation include critical raw materials, aeronautics and ICT. Under FP7, 109 proposals involving Japanese participants were selected for funding and five co-ordinated calls for proposals were launched. The most active areas of research include ICT, materials, environment, and health. The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions are supporting the exchange of research staff from institutions in EU and Japan.