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Press Release
President Panuelo & Special Envoy Furuya Strengthen FSM-Japan Relationship, Discuss Medical Containers, Port Development, and Regional Security
PALIKIR, Pohnpei—On July 28th 2019 His Excellency David W. Panuelo, President of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), received His Excellency Keiji Furuya, Special Envoy from the Government of Japan—who is also a Member of Japan’s House of Representatives, and the Chairman of the Japan-FSM Parliamentary Friendship League—in a courtesy call. The purpose of the meeting was to congratulate the President on his election and to discuss both ongoing bilateral partnership between the FSM and Japan, as well as proposed ideas for future partnerships.
The meeting began with President Panuelo and Special Envoy Furuya embracing in a hug, as the two are also longtime friends. “You have a bright perspective and are an optimistic person,” Special Envoy Furuya began. “I expect you will be a good leader for [the FSM].”
“Japan and the FSM have a close relationship…because of the strong ties [established] by previous leaders,” Special Envoy Furuya continued, thanking the President for nominating John Fritz to remain the FSM’s Ambassador to Japan. “Going forward, we would like to continue to strengthen our bilateral relations with Pacific Island countries including the FSM…to this end, I would like to devote myself to strengthen the relationship with Micronesia.”
“We have a strong bond, a special bond—I believe the Japanese word is kizuna,” the President replied.
President Panuelo and Special Envoy Furuya shared many ideas for strengthening the relationship between FSM and Japan, including the potential procurement of containers filled with medical equipment to augment emergency relief efforts after natural disasters, and the potential recruitment of FSM students to Japanese medical universities.
Regional security was also a topic of discussion, both in the short term and long term. Special Envoy Furuya, noting that the Honorable Michael Pompeo, Secretary of the U.S. Department of State, will be meeting with President Panuelo on August 5th, wondered if the President intended to discuss regional security with the Secretary. Japan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs is also scheduled to visit the FSM soon, on August 7th, and regional security is expected to be one of the topics of conversation.
“We expect that in the visit with Mr. Pompeo that we’ll be...[discussing] security matters for the region; but we’ll be focusing on our Compact of Free Association, our treaty. The FSM has been preparing itself…for almost two years now to renegotiate the expiring provisions,” the President said. “We know your relationship is also very close with the U.S., so I ask that you also talk to the U.S. to seek support for the relationship we have under the Compact.”
“[Japan’s] Prime Minister Abe has a very good chemistry with [U.S.] President Donald J. Trump,” Special Envoy Furuya said, noting Japan’s strong friendship with both the FSM as well as the United States. “Japan-U.S. relations are stronger than ever.”
President Panuelo also requested Special Envoy Furuya’s help regarding the FSM’s development of its ports. “When I was with President [Peter M.] Christian and Prime Minister Abe some years ago, we raised the issue of commercial docks…I believe the [Japan International Cooperation Association] has been visiting here and doing technical reviews,” the President said. “We hope the project will be ongoing and a success here in Pohnpei…the port is congested, and I think the idea is to have the port extended, including the fisheries section.”
“As you know, infrastructure is very important to our Nation’s development…so that’s one of the projects we hope that Japan can support us with,” the President continued.
“I understand your request, and will talk to the [Ministry of Foreign Affairs] and the [Japan International Cooperation Association] about them,” Special Envoy Furuya said. “You are so enthusiastic about this, I can feel it!”
“I wake up every morning ready to come to work because it’s exciting to see the process of Nation-building, and cooperating with Japan, the United States, and other countries…I am very grateful to be able to serve the citizens of our country,” the President said.
Special Envoy Furuya was visiting the FSM to attend the Joint National Inauguration Ceremony, and the FSM National Government extends its appreciation to him and the people and Government of Japan for their ongoing friendship and support.