Newsletter No. 158
January 13, 2006

 

SPECIAL ENVOY NOBUTAKA MACHIMURA IN KAZAKHSTAN

Former Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, in the capacity of a Special Envoy from Prime Minister Koizumi, has been visiting Kazakhstan in order to consolidate relations between the two countries. Yesterday, Machimura was received separately by President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov and discussed how they might strengthen Japanese-Kazakh cooperation in a variety of fields.

It will be recalled from previous Newsletters that Prime Minister Akhmetov had himself visited Japan last June (Shingetsu Newsletter No. 16) and that the two countries have recently agreed to boost their cooperation in regard to uranium (Shingetsu Newsletter No.125). There is also something of a competition for influence in the Central Asian region between Japan and China.

The Central Asia Plus Japan Dialogue was supposed to have been held between foreign ministers in August 2005, but the event was cancelled due to the snap elections in Japan on September 11th last year. This coming March, there is now a plan to hold bilateral economic talks between Japan and Kazakhstan in Astana.

My impression is that Japanese-Kazakh relations are stronger than any Japanese relationship with the other countries of Central Asia, but this point will require future examination.

 

COMMENTARY

1) From Joseph Tomei of Kumamoto Gakuen University on January 14, 2006:

If this is the case (and I have the same impression), I think it is because Kazakhstan was the location where first Soviet Koreans, and then several other minorities, were deported by Stalin. After Stalin's death, attempts to revive ethnic identity have resulted in one of the more outward-looking policies in the region. In addition, the presence of a large ethnic Korean population has brought in investment by South Korean chaebol, and I would not be surprised if Japanese companies are feeling pressure because of South Korean success.