Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni agreed Monday to work together toward the success of the Group of Seven summit in June, with Italy taking over the presidency from Japan this year.
During their talks in Tokyo, the two leaders discussed the achievements of the G7 summit that was held in Kishida's home constituency of Hiroshima in May 2023, including the establishment of rules to prevent the misuse of artificial intelligence technology.
Kishida and Meloni also reconfirmed their cooperation in supporting Ukraine, which has been under Russian invasion for the past two years, while exchanging views on how to tackle China's growing assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region.
In Hiroshima, the G7 leaders pledged "unwavering support" for Ukraine amid the war, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy participating in sessions on the closing day of the three-day gathering.
Meloni told Kishida that Italy is planning to focus at the upcoming summit on how to grapple with climate change and energy security as well as how to collaborate with emerging and developing economies in the "Global South."
At a joint press appearance after their talks, Meloni praised Kishida, saying he successfully concluded the G7 summit in 2023, which she called very complex.
Kishida said, "I welcome Italy's commitment" to hosting the G7 summit while "building upon the results of the Hiroshima summit." This year's G7 summit is scheduled to take place on June 13-15 in Apulia, southern Italy.
On the defense front, Kishida and Meloni discussed their three-way joint project to develop a next-generation fighter jet with Britain as they face increasingly severe security challenges, such as Russia's aggression against Ukraine.
Late last year, the defense ministers of Japan, Italy, and Britain agreed to set up a coordinating body to proceed with the project, a key step in putting their plan into practice.
The G7 groups Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, plus the European Union.
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