Laudation by President Von der Leyen for Japanese PM Kishida at the 2023 Atlantic Council Awards!!!

Subscribe here: It is a pleasure, and an honour, to be here tonight and speak at this esteemed gathering – about an ally and a friend, and a most deserving recipient of this award: Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. I could tell the audience about our amazing cooperation of these years, dear Prime Minister; about how we coordinated our actions in the wake and in the aftermath of Russia’s full-scale aggression of Ukraine; or how you hosted an incredibly successful G7 in Hiroshima. ... And you, dear Fumio, decided to make the long and difficult trip to Bucha to see with your own eyes the horror that Russia left behind, but also Ukraine’s determinations to resist and to fight for its freedom. For the first time since World War II, a Japanese Prime Minister visited a country at war. And you brough with you Japan’s solidarity, in words and deeds. From the very beginning of this war, you opened your country to Ukrainian refugees. You joined us in sanctioning Russia for its crimes. And you stood at our side when Putin tried to blackmail Europe with gas. Ukraine and the whole of Europe will be forever grateful to you for this. Arigato, dear Fumio. ... Please join me in congratulating Prime Minister Kishida on earning the 2023 Atlantic Council Award. ... On September 20, the Global Goalkeepers Award 2023 ceremony was held under the sponsorship of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, received the Global Goalkeepers Award 2023 for Japan’s leadership focused on health at the G7 Hiroshima Summit and years of immense contribution to global health, among other reasons. The ceremony was attended by the Co-Chairs of the Gates Foundation, Dr. Bill Gates and Ms. Melinda Gates. In his acceptance speech, Prime Minister Kishida paid tribute to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for having carried out its mission of “helping to ensure that every person has the chance to lead a healthy, productive life” ever since its foundation, with a focus on global health, based on its belief that “all lives have equal value.” Prime Minister Kishida pointed out that, while this year marks the midpoint toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the achievement of the SDGs is at grave risk. He noted that against this backdrop, there is an ever greater need to accelerate efforts to achieve the SDGs. Prime Minister Kishida also stated that, in particular, global health is an essential area for materializing human security. He added that, at the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May this year, discussions on global health focused on developing and strengthening global health architecture for enhancing prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR) for future health emergencies; contributing to achieving more resilient, equitable and sustainable Universal Health Coverage (UHC); and promoting health innovation. Prime Minister Kishida also stated that the private sector’s further contribution, including from a financial aspect, is indispensable to solving global issues including global health challenges, and that he hopes the Gates Foundation will continue to play an active role and the Government of Japan wishes to work more closely with the Gates Foundation toward achieving the SDGs by 2030. Finally, Prime Minister Kishida stated that the honour was not achieved on his own, but with the contributions of the people of Japan and all the partners attending the ceremony, who have worked hand-in-hand together, and appreciated them for their support. #eudebates #Japan #Kishida #Goalkeepers #Awards Stay connected with us! Facebook: Twitter: Instagram: #eudebates the unique initiative aiming to promote debate, dialogue, knowledge, participation and communication among citizens.