Japan keeps calling for dialogue on Middle East de-escalation
Japan said Trump offered no fresh route to peace, and pledged to keep pursuing dialogue with Iran while joining partners to push for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen.
- Japan will continue to advocate for dialogue to de-escalate military clashes in the Middle East, particularly after a U.S. presidential speech was seen as offering no new solutions.
- A specific focus of Japan's diplomatic efforts is to secure the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for safe navigation.
- To support its push for a peaceful resolution, Tokyo plans to strengthen cooperation with other G7 nations and international partners.
- Top Japanese officials have publicly reiterated that a "solution through dialogue is crucial" to calming the situation.
Japan plans to keep calling for an early de-escalation of the military clashes between the US-Israeli side and Iran through dialogue after US President Donald Trump's closely followed speech provided no surprise on the matter.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration believes that Trump said "nothing new" in his speech on April 1, officials said. Her government also plans to maintain its diplomatic efforts to realise the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
"A solution through dialogue is crucial. We hope that the talks with Iran that Trump has mentioned in recent days will go in a good direction," Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a press conference Thursday (April 2).
At a separate press conference, Takayuki Kobayashi, policy leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said he takes the speech calmly.
Some Takaichi administration officials had expected that Trump could announce a ceasefire. But he showed no path toward a halt to the conflict.
"The speech was intended for a domestic audience," a Japanese government official said. "It's likely that he thought he needed to show his eagerness to end the conflict before his country's midterm elections, as he was jittery over soaring oil prices.
To prepare for the possibility of a prolonged conflict, Tokyo plans to strengthen its cooperation with other Group of Seven major democracies and more than 30 countries that supported a joint statement by the leaders of six countries, including Japan, on safe navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
Japan will "patiently continue its diplomatic efforts to help calm the situation as early as possible," Kihara said.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
