Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias’ statement to journalists following his contacts in Japan (Tokyo, 13.04.2022)
Today’s visit to Japan was a particularly successful one, in my view.
I had the opportunity to have an in-depth exchange of views with my Japanese counterpart, Yoshimasa Hayashi, following our contact in the Meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers in Brussels a few days ago. First of all, we discussed Ukraine. My colleague demonstrated a particular interest for the Greek Diaspora in Mariupol and Odessa. We analyzed the wider implications of the Russian invasion. But we also had the opportunity to talk about the International Law of the Sea and the cooperation we have established, the co-operation between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs regarding the analysis of issues that fall within the International Law of the Sea, that is, UNCLOS. And beyond that, we discussed our bilateral relations and the possibility of their development in the near future.
I also had the opportunity to convey to him the invitation of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to the Japanese Prime Minister to visit Athens.
JOURNALIST: Minister, we heard in your statements that both you and your Japanese counterpart repeatedly referred to revisionism, which you condemned. I would also like to ask, in what way can the two countries cooperate, given that they face similar challenges regarding the questioning of their sovereign rights deriving from the Law of the Sea?
N. DENDIAS: Japan is a particularly interesting case. It is an island country, a country that has signed UNCLOS, a country that belongs to the Group of Friends on UNCLOS. And something else, which perhaps escapes the attention of Greek society: Japan is a country that also signed the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923. So, in this sense, it is a country which, considering its large size is an essential interlocutor on the issues of the Law of the Sea, on issues of stability and in the effort to address revisionism, meaning adherence to the Treaties and the borders defined by these Treaties.
This is our common ground when we both condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But this is also our common ground when we talk about global stability.