Newsletter No. 494
News-Analysis
January 24, 2007

 

The following reports relate to Japanese relations with various Arab countries of the Persian Gulf. The countries covered here are mainly Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.

DOHA BANK BECOMES THE ONLY WEST ASIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTION TO HAVE A TOKYO BRANCH

It was reported earlier this week that Doha Bank of Qatar opened a Tokyo branch on January 18th. This means that Qatar has become the only West Asian country to have a private financial institution in Japan. Explaining the purpose of this project, Doha Bank’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer Raghavan Seetharaman explained that, “the single largest trading partner for Qatar today is Japan.” He also noted that, “the inauguration of our office in Japan is a very important milestone, which gives us an opportunity to understand and explore the Japanese market, which may lead us to establish Doha Bank’s operations in a full-fledged manner subject to regulatory approval. We want to be perceived as a local bank with traditional values and a strong international presence.”

Also on the 18th, a gala dinner was held at the Hotel New Otani. The leader of the Qatari delegation was Ambassador Reyad Ali al-Ansari. The highest-ranking Japanese participant was LDP House of Representatives member Taro Kono, who has previously shown interest in Japan-Arab relations.

Other countries such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have had Tokyo branches in the past, but they have all since failed.

JAPAN TO ESTABLISH LARGE PAVILION AT ABU DHABI ENVIRONMENT EXHIBITION

JETRO is taking the lead in establishing a large pavilion at the Environment 2007 exhibition to be held in Abu Dhabi from January 28th to 31st. Japan is interested in commemorating the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between their country and the United Arab Emirates, and are also considering new ways to expand Japanese trade links with the Persian Gulf countries.

Commented JETRO Chairman Osamu Watanabe: “This exhibition is a symbol of our continued efforts to strengthen our diplomatic ties between the UAE and Japan. Since our initial exhibition in 2002, the economic ties between our countries have gone from strength to strength, particularly in the areas of energy and infrastructure development. We hope that the large number of participants taking part in the Japanese pavilion at Environment 2007 will deepen mutual understanding between our two nations, in addition to promoting trade tie-ups and technology cooperation.”

AME Info also quoted the exhibition organizer Abdallah Umar as follows: “The market for environment related projects in this region is tremendous with both Middle East and North African countries looking to invest in this industry. The participation of Japan in Environment 2007 is an important step in establishing this exhibition as a commentator on the growing eco-business industry. Our relationship with the Japanese economy will enable us to use their expertise within this field to better maintain, and sustain the growth of our economy for future generations.”

It will be recalled that Japan has a serious trade deficit with Persian Gulf countries because of its large purchases of oil and gas, and so they are eager to find ways to provide products that people in the Gulf States want to buy.

KUWAITI AMBASSADOR TAKES INTEREST IN JAPAN’S ISLAMIC BANKING MOVES

The Kuwaiti ambassador in Tokyo, Ghassan Al-Zawawi, is said to be very interested in facilitating Japan’s entry into the Islamic banking market. In fact, according to the Kuwait News Agency, the large seminar on Islamic banking held in Tokyo on the 22nd was an event in which he played a “central role in realizing.” The event attracted about 300 delegates, and received some media coverage.

However, Ambassador Al-Zawawi was not entirely satisfied with what he found at the event: “I am not much impressed with the level of attendees from the Middle Eastern countries participating in Japan's first major seminar on Islamic finance, particularly Kuwait, a market leader in this industry. I was expecting to see better participation from Kuwaiti financial institutions to take this opportunity to gain leverage on the world's second largest economy.”

RIYADH PROMISES STABLE OIL SUPPLIES AT MODERATE PRICES

On the 23rd, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nuaimi was in Tokyo and met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The main report that has emerged from this event is a promise by the oil minister that “moderate” prices would be maintained in the oil market. The minister did not state what a “moderate” price might actually be.

Also, METI’s Shin Hosaka reported that, “He said that in case of emergencies, Saudi Arabia will fulfill its duty as a supplier to Japan and the rest of the world.” Obviously, Tokyo would be happy to hear that.

One point to note is that there has been some talk in Washington and elsewhere that oil prices might be drastically lowered in ordered to undermine the Iranian economy. Al-Nuaimi’s assurances in Tokyo do not seem to indicate that Riyadh is actually going to enforce this kind of policy.

JAPANESE CULTURAL EVENTS IN THE GULF COUNTRIES

There have been at least two significant Japanese cultural events held in the Gulf countries recently.

First of all, there is the Gulf tour of the Japanese traditional band Musa, which has been received warmly by Arab audiences. This is a six-member band whose members are Jun Takada, Tomohiko Inoue, Ryusho Oyama, Hirohide Oyama, Kiyoshi Ibukuro and Nobushiro Kikuchi. They have been touring Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman. Apparently, they also recently performed in Iran as well. This tour has been sponsored by the Japan Foundation.

The Japanese ambassador to Qatar attended one of these performances and made the following observations: “Musa is a word meaning the warriors of Japan. The music is very strong, and very loud too, I think. But though loud, Japanese traditional music still tries to deliver the message of peace -- that even though the warriors are in the combat field, they’re hoping for peace.”

The second cultural event is an exhibition of Japanese modern art in Kuwait which is being held throughout the second half of January. The exhibition is entitled, “Passage to the Future: Art from a New Generation in Japan,” and features the work of eleven contemporary artists. The art includes paintings, sculptures, photographs, and video works. Commented Kuwaiti Director General of the National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters Badr al-Rifai, “Viewing the displayed works of art, one can sense Japan’s scientific and technological advancement which reflected on the nature of contemporary art itself... One can sense the entwining of Japanese traditions and the country’s outstanding development through the work of its young artists.”