Swiss minister moots updated Japan-Switzerland free trade agreement
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida greets Defence Minister Viola Amherd, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, before their meeting at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, Japan, August 7, 2024. According to the Swiss foreign ministry, Japan is Switzerland's third most important trading partner in Asia.
EPA/ Yuichi Yamazaki / Pool
Select your language
Generated with artificial intelligence.
Listening: Swiss minister moots updated Japan-Switzerland free trade agreement
During her visit to Japan on Wednesday, Defence Minister Viola Amherd, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, reiterated Switzerland's desire to modernise the free trade agreement between the two countries. Despite excellent trade relations, there is a lack of dynamism in the trade of goods.
Japan is Switzerland’s third most important trading partner in Asia. In her talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, Amherd discussed updating the 2009 free trade agreement, as well as prospects in energy and sustainability.
They also discussed the World Expo in Osaka 2025, where the Swiss pavilion will focus on life sciences, environmental protection, and artificial intelligence, as announced by the Swiss defence ministry.
In an international context, discussions centred on the global security architecture. Amherd thanked Japan for its commitment to the Ukraine peace conference at Bürgenstock in canton Nidwalden.
The situation in North and South Korea was also discussed. Switzerland is a member of the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, which has been monitoring the ceasefire agreement since 1953.
Both parties celebrated the friendly relationship between Switzerland and Japan on the 160th anniversary of their bilateral relations. Amherd’s programme also included a meeting with Japan’s Defence Minister Minoru Kihara. A reception by Emperor Naruhito is planned for Thursday.
Adapted from German by DeepL/amva
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Life & Aging
Zurich: how the world capital of housing shortages is tackling the problem
Is your place of origin, your Heimatort, important to you?
Every Swiss citizen has a Heimatort, a place of origin, but many have never visited theirs. What’s your relationship with your Heimatort? What does it mean to you?
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Pope was a person full of respect: Swiss president
This content was published on
Swiss president Karin Keller-Sutter, who is attending the funeral of Pope Francis, says the pontiff was always full of respect.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.