Italy, Japan agree to elevate ties to strategic partnership

By Ahmet Gencturk

ANKARA (AA) – Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Japan’s Fumio Kishida on Tuesday agreed to elevate their countries’ “excellent relations” to the level of a strategic partnership.

“We agreed to elevate our relationship to the status of strategic partnership,” Meloni said at a joint news conference in Rome.

She said the countries agreed to work on priorities proposed by Tokyo, including protecting the rules-based international order, strengthening economic security, protecting supply chains, and upping the fight against climate change.

They will also continue supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia, she said, according to Italian state-run news agency ANSA.

Meloni said Italy, Japan, and the UK are working to develop a sixth-generation aircraft, referring to the plan first announced in December.

“These are all challenges on which there is a lot of work to be done, we will deepen these issues related to international politics, starting with the consequences of the war in Ukraine,” she said.

On bilateral ties, she pointed out that Italy and Japan have a trade volume of €12 billion ($12.9 billion).

Kishida underlined that Japan and Italy agreed to oppose any attempts to unilaterally alter a status quo by force and nuclear blackmailing.

He said they concurred on the need for G-7 countries to show a “strong resolve” to maintain a rules-based, free, and open international order.