Japanese foreign minister shares hopes for Caroline Kennedy as new ambassador
Sep. 27, 2013
by Jumpei Fujimura, Staff Writer
At a press conference held on September 20, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, elected from district one in Hiroshima, shared his hopes for Caroline Kennedy, 55, in the role of U.S. ambassador to Japan, saying he looks forward to exchanging views with her on nuclear abolition and working together toward this end. Ms. Kennedy has been nominated for this post by U.S. President Barack Obama.
On September 19, Ms. Kennedy was present at a hearing on her nomination by the U.S. Senate Commission on Foreign Relations. At the hearing she expressed determination to strengthen U.S.-Japan ties by saying, “I can think of no country in which I would rather serve than Japan.” Recalling a visit to Hiroshima that took place in 1978, she said the experience affected her deeply.
Mr. Kishida welcomed Ms. Kennedy’s thoughtful remarks at the hearing. He stressed that Japan and the United States share the goal of a world without nuclear arms and expressed his desire to work together with Ms. Kennedy.
“A visit to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to touch the reality of the atomic bombings, would be very significant,” Mr. Kishida said, hoping that Ms. Kennedy will visit the A-bombed cities after assuming the post.
(Originally published on September 21, 2013)
At a press conference held on September 20, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, elected from district one in Hiroshima, shared his hopes for Caroline Kennedy, 55, in the role of U.S. ambassador to Japan, saying he looks forward to exchanging views with her on nuclear abolition and working together toward this end. Ms. Kennedy has been nominated for this post by U.S. President Barack Obama.
On September 19, Ms. Kennedy was present at a hearing on her nomination by the U.S. Senate Commission on Foreign Relations. At the hearing she expressed determination to strengthen U.S.-Japan ties by saying, “I can think of no country in which I would rather serve than Japan.” Recalling a visit to Hiroshima that took place in 1978, she said the experience affected her deeply.
Mr. Kishida welcomed Ms. Kennedy’s thoughtful remarks at the hearing. He stressed that Japan and the United States share the goal of a world without nuclear arms and expressed his desire to work together with Ms. Kennedy.
“A visit to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to touch the reality of the atomic bombings, would be very significant,” Mr. Kishida said, hoping that Ms. Kennedy will visit the A-bombed cities after assuming the post.
(Originally published on September 21, 2013)
