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Japan’s PM visits UAE after Saudi Arabia, talks green energy, supply sources

Japan is trying to move away from fossil fuels toward greener energy, which it plans to promote in the region during Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to the Gulf this week.
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during the UAE - Japan Business Forum in Abu Dhabi on July 17, 2023. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrived in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday on the second leg of a Gulf tour aimed at securing energy supplies to Tokyo and offering the countries of the region Japanese green technology.

Ahead of his arrival to the UAE, Kishida said in an open letter carried by state news agency WAM that he plans to offer Japan’s “cutting-edge decarbonization technologies” as part of a green energy initiative for the Middle East, under which Tokyo and Abu Dhabi will cooperate in the fields of “hydrogen and ammonia production and utilization as well as carbon recycling.”

Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan hosted Kishida in Abu Dhabi for talks focused on bilateral cooperation and the latest regional and international developments, WAM said.

During the meeting, Sheikh Mohammed said he was looking forward to Japan’s participation at the COP28 UN climate conference — which Dubai will be hosting in November. He further praised Japan’s active role in promoting climate action, according to WAM.

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