Good afternoon,
Welcome to the Embassy of Italy. We are very pleased to host, after a long time, the meeting of the EU Member States Trade Promotion Organisations in Japan.
Let me begin by thanking the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation and the Italian Trade Agency in Tokyo for the organization of this important meeting. A sincere thank goas also to Kazuo Usui san, Director of the Europe Division of JETRO, that will join the second part of the meeting. Mr. Usui san will present the results of the surveys conducted by JETRO on the action of the Japanese Companies in Europe and on the cooperation between EU and Japan in Third Countries. I believe these are matters of great interest for all of us.
Before leaving the stage to Philippe de Taxis du Poët, General Manager of the EU-Japan Centre, and to Erica Di Giovancarlo, Director of the Italian Trade Agency in Tokyo, I wish to underline how important is to gather here today.
We might be competitors in some sectors, but I believe that exchanging experiences and, possibly, also the difficulties encountered in our daily activities on the Japanese market is the only possible strategy to achieve greater results and to adjust our objectives, visions and perspectives. I am convinced that sitting around the same table and sharing information and data represent an asset to the action of promotion that each of us carries out in Japan for our countries.
Discussion and a regular exchange of views are a true added value If we consider, for instance, the results achieved with the entry into force of the Economic Partnership between EU and Japan. The EPA Agreement has proven that we are stronger If we act together, but also that constant coordination and regular dialogue are needed in order to ensure an optimal implementation of the Agreement.
Cooperation is indeed necessary in order to best represent our common interests and successfully pursue our objectives as a united front.
To conclude with, as Ambassador of Italy in Japan, I want to draw also the focus on the importance of enhancing the promotion of scientific and industrial cooperation and the development of joint projects in specific sectors of common interest, such as green technologies, health and aging society, biotechnology, robotics and space.
Thank you!