HIS Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam yesterday attended a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, which was followed by a joint press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office/Residence.

Upon arrival, His Majesty was greeted by Abe and Kenichi Suganuma, Ambassador of Japan to Brunei Darussalam.

During the meeting, His Majesty and Abe exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of mutual concern.

The leaders also discussed various efforts to further strengthen the relationship between both countries.

Among the topics discussed was Japan’s plan to further build the cooperation with Brunei in the field of energy and defence.

Abe heaped praise on the His Majesty, who is the co-chairman of the Asean-Japan Summit, over Brunei’s successful chairmanship of this year Asean Summit.

The prime minister, who noted that Brunei and Japan would be celebrating 30 years of diplomatic relations next year, also expressed appreciation for Brunei’s supply of LNG to the country, saying that Japan would not only like to increase cooperation with the Sultanate in the energy area, but also seek to develop and strengthen dialogue in other fields and sectors. - Borneo Bulletin (14 December 2013)