Prague, June 10 (CTK) – Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka will meet his opposite number Shinzo Abe, head of the lower house of parliament Tadamori Oshima and Crown Prince Naruhito during his forthcoming five-day visit to Japan, according to a document the cabinet will discuss on Wednesday.
A delegation of entrepreneurs and some ministers will accompany Sobotka (Social Democrats, CSSD) on the visit he is to pay later this month on the 60th anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Japan and Czechoslovakia.
According to the document CTK has at its disposal, Prague’s relations with Japan rank among its most important relations with non-European countries.
“The Czech Republic is interested in intensive cooperation with Japan in all fields. Unlike the positive dynamism of the economic level of bilateral relations, the two parties can see reserves in the cooperation in the political area,” the document says.
On arrival in Japan, Sobotka will open the Czech-Japanese business forum to be attended by representatives of more than 30 firms from the Czech Republic.
Industry and Trade Minister Karel Havlicek (CSSD) and Culture Minister Daniel Herman (Christian Democrats, KDU-CSL) will accompany Sobotka to help boost bilateral relations.
Apart from Abe and Prince Naruhito, Sobotka will also meet the mayors of Kyoto and Hiroshima.
“The visit is to further enhance bilateral relations and it should enable the exchange of views on current regional and global issues,” the report addressed to ministers says.
The two countries’ prime ministers have visited the other country only four times so far. Czech PMs Vaclav Klaus (Civic Democrats, ODS) and Jiri Paroubek (CSSD) visited Japan in 1996 and 2005, respectively.
The Japanese prime ministers paid visits to the Czech Republic in 2003 and 2009.
