Japanese Prime Minister May Not Speak at UN General Assembly

If that happens, Mr. Kishida Fumio will be the first Japanese Prime Minister not to speak at the general debate of the United Nations General Assembly since September 2007.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo, August 14. (Source: Reuters)

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio will not speak at the general debate of the United Nations General Assembly when he visits the United States in late September, Jiji news agency quoted sources as saying.

In the general debate, which will take place from September 24 to 30, Japan has been allocated a speaking slot on the afternoon of September 26, local time. However, Mr. Kishida plans to return to Japan on September 27, the day of the election for the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

Japan has been negotiating with other countries to reschedule the speech, but no agreement has been reached. A prime minister aide said it now “seems difficult” for Mr. Kishida to appear at the general debate.

Mr. Kishida will thus be the first Japanese Prime Minister in 17 years not to speak at the general debate. In September 2007, then- Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura gave a speech on behalf of then-Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.

It remains unclear whether Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko will attend the UN General Assembly session, as she is seeking to run in the LDP leadership election.

Ambassador Kazuyuki Yamazaki, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations, is likely to deliver a speech instead.

On September 22, Mr. Kishida will make his last overseas trip as Prime Minister of the Land of the Rising Sun. During his time in New York, he plans to attend the Quad Summit of the United States, Japan, Australia and India, and hold bilateral talks with host President Joe Biden and other foreign leaders.

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