EP delegation concludes fruitful visit to Japan

From 28 to 30 May, 13 Members of the European Parliament (EP) Delegation for Relations with Japan (D-JP) visited Tokyo and Osaka. The delegation was headed by D-JP Vice Chair Elżbieta Łukacijewska. The EP, represented by the delegation of D-JP Members, and the National Diet of Japan held their 42 nd Inter-Parliamentary Meeting (IPM) in Tokyo on 28-29 May 2025. The previous meeting was held in July 2023 in Strasbourg, France. During their stay, the Members of the European Parliament met with Mr Fukushiro Nukaga, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Masakazu Sekiguchi, President of the House of Councillors, Mr Hajime Funada, Chair of the Diet Delegation to the IPM, Ms Toshiko Abe, Minister for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Mr Takeshi Iwaya, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Mr Takekazu Morioka, Deputy Governor of Osaka Prefecture. Members also met representatives of Japanese civil society groups on artificial intelligence (AI)/digitalisation and privacy issues as well as Human Rights Now on women's rights. In Osaka, Members visited Expo 2025 Osaka, which Japan is hosting until October. At the Expo, members visited the pavilions of Japan, the European Union (EU) and Poland. They also visited selected signature and private-sector pavilions, including the Women’s Pavilion and the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion, as well as the “Earth Mart” and “Dialogue Theatre” pavilions. Upon the conclusion of the visit, delegation Chair Łukacijewska underlined that "the...