ANKARA

The Japanese foreign minister said on Friday that his country wants to strengthen cooperation with South Africa, particularly in the power and energy sectors.

During a visit to Tokyo by Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s minister of international relations and cooperation, Yoko Kamikawa said South Africa is a business hub for Japanese companies in Africa.

“It is indispensable to maintain and develop a free and open maritime order based on the rule of law as the countries that both face Indo-Pacific Ocean,” she said.

Lamola, for his part, voiced his gratitude for Japanese cooperation towards the decarbonization of South Africa, including technical cooperation. He expressed strong expectations for Japanese companies which are creating many jobs to further expand into South Africa, according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement.

Lamola also praised the lifting of a ban on avocado exports from South Africa to Japan and said he has high hopes to promote high-level visits between the two countries, utilizing the Japan-South Africa Partnership Forum.

The two also exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine, Middle East, East Asia, and North Korea.

Lamola arrived in Tokyo to attend the Tokyo International Conference on African Development meeting, which will kick off on Saturday.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid