PM Takaichi Seen Skipping NATO Summit in July

Tokyo, June 23 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi plans to skip an upcoming two-day NATO summit in Turkey from July 7, prioritizing Diet proceedings before the current session ends on July 17, government sources said Tuesday. The prime minister had initially planned to visit Ankara for three days from July 6 to attend the NATO summit, with the aim of boosting her country’s ties with NATO. However, Takaichi now faces a tight parliamentary schedule, including a possible debate with other party leaders on July 8 and a House of Councillors audit committee meeting in early July. Since Russia began invading Ukraine in 2022, NATO has invited Japan’s leader to attend its summits. Then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida joined NATO summits for three consecutive years from that year, stressing that the security of the Euro-Atlantic region and that of the Indo-Pacific region are inseparable. Last year, then Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba canceled his attendance at the last minute, following an escalation of tensions in the Middle East. If Takaichi decides to skip this year’s summit, the government may send Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi in her place. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]