The Fourth technical-Level Meeting on the Four-Party Consultative Unit for the “Corridor for Peace and Prosperity”
Embassy of Japan
April 3, 2008
On April 2, Japanese Foreign Ministry issued the following Press Release on the Forth Technical-Level Meeting on the Four-Party Consultative Unit[1] for the “Corridor for Peace and Prosperity[2].”
- The fourth technical-level meeting of the Four-Party Consultative Unit for the “Corridor for Peace and Prosperity” was held on March 31(Mon) and April 1(Tue) in Jerusalem with the participation of experts from Israel, Japan (headed by Mr. Shinsuke Sugiyama, Deputy Director-General of the Middle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,) Jordan and Palestine.
Although the Middle East Peace Process has fallen into difficulties, Japan has been actively engaged in promoting this initiative based on the idea that Japan will make its maximum contribution in any situation. The meeting was held with the cooperation of the other 3 parties in response to Japan’s positive attitude.
- The outcome of the meeting was as follows;
- The Japanese side briefed the current status of this initiative and developments of the second phase of the Feasibility Study (F/S). The Four Parties agreed to continue their cooperation for the development of the F/S, including research on suitable access between the site of the Agro-Industrial Park and the border with Jordan, towards its completion in November.
- The Jordanian side updated the current status of Damiya (Prince Mohammad) Bridge reconstruction issue.
- For the purpose of supporting the realization of the initiative, the Four Parties agreed to cooperate on expeditious formulation of projects and their implementation in order to contribute to agricultural development and to facilitate transportation. In this regard, the proposal for technical cooperation project in the agricultural field was discussed and the Four Parties agreed to work closely for its materialization.
- The Four Parties agreed to hold the Third Ministerial-Level Meeting of the Four-Party in Tokyo soon in the months to come, with the hope to hold that before G8 Summit meeting, in order to announce the achieved results so far and future prospect.
[1] The Four-Party Consultation Unit is a meeting established for the concept of “Corridor for Peace and Prosperity,” which will be attended by representative of Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Japan.
[2] On the occasion of then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s visit to the Middle East in July 2006, Japan proposed the concept of the “Corridor for Peace and Prosperity” which is aimed at contributing to creating a viable Palestinian Economy in the future by promoting economic development in the Jordan Valley with a focus on the agro-indstry sector, to be achieved through regional cooperation. It was agreed upon the leaders of Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan. In order to materialize this concept, Japan hosted the ministerial-level startup meeting for the Four-Party Consultative Unit. For further information, please see:
http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/middle_e/peaceprocess/corridor/index.html
[Related links]
*Middle East Peace Process (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s website)
http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/middle_e/peaceprocess/index.html
*Japan-Israel Relations (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s website)
http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/middle_e/israel/index.html
*Joint Statement on Developing Relations between Japan and Israel (Embassy of Japan’s website)
http://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/english/html/pressreleases/2008/0227.htm
*Japan-Palestinian Authorities Relations (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s website)
http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/middle_e/palestine/index.html
*Japan-Jordan Relations (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s website)
http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/middle_e/jordan/index.html
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