Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is among politicians and royals from 194 different countries who are arriving in Tokyo today to attend the Oct. 22 enthronement ceremony of Emperor Naruhito.
Zelensky will spend Oct. 21-24 in Japan. Besides the ceremony, he will also have meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the chairpersons of both chambers of the Japanese parliament, and key leaders from business and civil society.
It is Zelensky’s first trip to an east Asian country in his capacity as president. After taking office in May, his first state visits were to Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Toronto, Ankara and Warsaw, followed by an official visit to the United Nations in New York.
Japan is a major NATO partner and member of the G7 group of advanced economies, making the country a key partner and important ally to Ukraine in the East. It is also the only Asian country that has joined the West in imposing economic sanctions on Russia over its illegal annexation of Crimea and the ongoing war against Ukraine.
Tokyo has its own territorial disputes with Moscow over the so-called Northern Territories, four islands north of Japan that the Soviets seized after World War II and Russia has not returned. And much like eastern and northwestern Europe, Japan also sees regular incursions into its airspace by Russian aircraft.
Despite being located more than 8,000 kilometers to Ukraine’s east, Japan has emerged as a vital strategic partner for the country in recent years, providing some $2 billion in grants and loans to Kyiv since the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution that ousted Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovich from power.
In Tokyo on October 21, Zelensky thanked Japan for that steadfast support: “We are grateful for Japan’s consistent policy of supporting Ukraine and not recognizing the illegal occupation of Crimea, for maintaining sanctions against Russia,” he told Shinzō Abe at a meeting in Tokyo, according to his spokesperson.
Japan is also one of multiple Asian countries that have been softening their travel restrictions on Ukrainians in recent years: “We highly appreciate the decision to soften the visa regime for Ukrainian citizens… We will be grateful for the continued consideration of visa-free travel for Ukrainians — especially before the 2020 Olympic Games,” Zelensky said. The international sporting competition will be held in Tokyo.
After the enthronement ceremony, a symbolic event in which the new Emperor of Japan enters the so-called Hall of Pine at the Imperial Palace for the first time, Zelensky has a number of important meetings.
According to his press office, Zelensky will sit down with the Japan International Cooperation Agency, a government agency focused on development assistance.
Likely on the agenda in those talks is a $1 billion low-interest loan to Ukraine to overhaul the capital’s Bortnytska sewage treatment plant in order to improve conditions in the Dnipro River, Europe’s fourth-longest waterway and the primary source of drinking water for Ukrainians.
With Japanese-Ukrainian commercial relations improving, driven by technology, IT and newly-approved agricultural export licenses, Zelensky will also look to strengthen ties with key business leaders in Tokyo at meetings with the Japan Association of New Economy, and other key executives from Japanese industry.
But there is at least one point of contention in Ukrainian-Japanese relations. Zelensky is likely to be asked about the status of a stalled Chinese takeover of the Ukrainian aerospace giant Motor Sich, opposed by Washington and Tokyo.
A state-owned Chinese company with ties to the People’s Liberation Army has been trying to acquire the company based in southeastern Ukraine. Motor Sich builds helicopters and specializes in aircraft engines and engine parts. China is cooperating with Russia on next-generation military helicopters.
First blocked in 2018 by the Ukrainian security services and courts, the deal is now in the hands of the country’s anti-monopoly committee.
Zelensky has not indicated that he will block the takeover, but has hinted that the government may intervene to protect jobs and uphold state security. Diplomatic sources in Ukraine have told the Kyiv Post that Japan is strongly opposed to a Chinese takeover at Motor Sich.
Read also: Japanese Ambassador Takashi Kurai pledges strong support for Ukraine
