Japan pledges $ 1 million to assist ASEAN’s COVID-19 response

TOKYO – Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi pledged on Wednesday to shell out $ 1 million into a new fund aimed at helping the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in responding to the novel coronavirus pandemic by acquiring of medical supplies and vaccine development.

In a virtual meeting with his counterparts from the 10 ASEAN members China and South Korea, Motegi also said that Japan will provide Southeast Asian countries with health care equipment and extend emergency yen loans to help their economic recovery. post-pandemic, according to the Japanese publication Foreign. Ministry.

China and South Korea have also pledged to contribute to the fund, which currently stands at $ 2.3 million, and the amount is expected to increase, a ministry official said.

Motegi promised to work towards the establishment of an ASEAN center for emerging diseases and public health emergencies, with the aim of helping protect people from the threat of a long-term pandemic, the ministry said.

The entity, to be funded by Tokyo, was first proposed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at a virtual summit of ASEAN plus China, South Korea and Japan in April.

Speaking at the talks on Wednesday, Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, who chaired the talks, said he hopes to intensify ASEAN-plus-3 cooperation to “effectively sustain the COVID-19 pandemic and mitigate immediate effects and promote sustainable development. “

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung Wha said she wants to strengthen coordination with her counterparts to achieve a “resilient region underpinned by strong multilateralism.”

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi called for “solid momentum in East Asian cooperation (to) turn the COVID-19 crisis into a development of opportunities.”

In separate talks with ASEAN foreign ministers, Motegi said he shared Tokyo’s “concerns” with the regional bloc over China’s territorial claims in the East and South China Seas.

“I would like to promote cooperation with the ASEAN countries, which share many points of (our) vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Motegi told reporters in Tokyo after the meetings.

The concept promoting the rule of law and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific area has been coined by Abe in a veiled veil against China’s growing influence in the region.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.