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Japan PM Suga, France’s Macron vow to boost defence ties in veiled counter to China
- The two leaders called the Tokyo Olympics ‘a symbol of world unity in defeating the coronavirus’
- They also affirmed deeper security cooperation as part of efforts to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific
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Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed on Saturday that Japan will pass on its experience of hosting a “safe and secure” Olympics – being held in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic – to Paris, host of the 2024 Summer Games.
In a joint statement released after their meeting in Tokyo, Suga and Macron also affirmed deeper security cooperation as part of efforts to realise a free and open Indo-Pacific in the face of China’s military build-up and assertive territorial claims in the region.
The leaders celebrated the opening of the Summer Games in the Japanese capital, calling the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics “a symbol of world unity in defeating the novel coronavirus.”
They agreed to share the Tokyo Games’ themes such as harmonious coexistence, sustainability and accessibility with the organising committee of the Paris Games, according to the statement.
The meeting, which was followed by a lunch, came a day after Macron attended the opening ceremony of the Tokyo event.
Macron was the only head of state from the Group of Seven industrialised nations, including Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, and the United States plus the European Union, to travel to Japan for the spectacle.
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