Romania has managed to honor its status as Japan’s Strategic Partner through high-level representation at the Osaka 2025 World Expo, during a day dedicated exclusively to our country (June 26, Flag Day) and during the following day (June 27) reserved for diplomatic meetings in Tokyo, announced Romania’s ambassador to Japan, Ovidiu Raetchi.

„High-level presence at this event—honored, during its six months, by monarchs, presidents, prime ministers, and foreign ministers—is an essential diplomatic objective for any friend and partner of Japan, as well as for any state that wishes to promote its culture, history, economy, scientific and innovative strength.

Despite seemingly insurmountable scheduling difficulties (the NATO summit in The Hague, the formation of a new government, changes in the leadership of the chambers of Parliament), there was a firm will on the part of all Romanian state institutions – in close collaboration with the Japanese Embassy in Bucharest, to which I am grateful – to honor the invitation of our Japanese strategic partner. In order to meet the schedule, the new President of the Senate, Mr. Mircea Abrudean, left for Osaka immediately after his election to the new position. This effort was welcomed by Japan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Ikuina Akiko, who told President Abrudean today that his presence represents “an important gesture for strengthening the friendly relations between our countries.”

During his visit to Osaka (June 26), the President of the Senate:

Delivered Romania’s speech at the official ceremony for “Romania’s National Day at Expo Osaka,” noting that „the relationship between Romania and Japan is at the highest possible level, that of Strategic Partnership: in the last year, the Romanian Cultural Institute in Tokyo has been activated; collaboration between the ELI-NP Măgurele Laser Center and experts in Osaka has been initiated; Samurai bonds have been launched and awarded; construction of the M6 line in Bucharest has been launched, including the station that will be named Tokyo”;

He opened the Romania-Japan Business Forum 2025 (“A roadmap for the next decade”), where he pointed out that „Expo 2025 Osaka is a clear opportunity to raise Japan’s investments in Romania to the level of our Strategic Partnership. I would like us not to forget that, since 2023, Romanian-Japanese projects have increased. By representing Romania here today at the highest parliamentary level, we are sending a clear signal of openness to a strengthened partnership with Japan at a key moment for economic and diplomatic repositioning in the Asia-Pacific region”;

He led the Romanian delegation in discussions with the Minister of State for Economy, Trade, and Industry, Ogushi Masaki, the European Union Ambassador to Japan, H.E. Jean Eric Paquet, and the directors of Expo Osaka.

He proposed to the mayor of Osaka, Hideyuki Yokoyama, that Osaka be twinned with Cluj-Napoca.

Visited four important pavilions for Romania: the European Union, Japan, Ukraine, and the Republic of Moldova;

Attended the concert of the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra from Bucharest, present in Osaka to honor Flag Day;

During his visit to Tokyo (June 27), the President of the Senate:

Discussed with the director and executive vice president of NTT DATA (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Data Group), Tadaoki Nishimura, the expansion of the company’s presence in Romania, where the Japanese group already has over 1,800 employees and an annual turnover of over €100 million, providing, among other things, digital services for the citizens of Cluj-Napoca. Following the Senate President’s plea for greater Japanese investment in Romania, the Japanese partners announced that they expect a 300% increase in their presence in our country, under conditions of political and economic stability;

During a meeting with Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Akiko Ikuina, he thanked Japan for its support to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova in the context of Russian aggression in Ukraine and obtained assurances regarding continued support for Chisinau: “We are determined to continue our support for the Republic of Moldova, which is greatly affected by the war in Ukraine,” Japan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs told Mircea Abrudean. Ms. Akiko Ikuina also thanked Romania for its presence at Expo Osaka.

He was received by Fukushiro Nukaga, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Japanese Diet, who assured him that “Romania must rely on Japan in a concrete way. Tell us how we can help. It is your time to shine.” The need for a concrete cooperation mechanism in the context of Ukraine’s reconstruction was invoked, using Romania’s geostrategically optimal infrastructure on the Black Sea and the Danube.

He invited Keidanren (the Japanese employers’ federation) to Romania in October, to the Romania-Japan Innovation Forum in Iași, to get actively involved in the project “Romania – Logistics Hub for the Reconstruction of Ukraine.” The Japanese side expressed the keen interest of Mitsubishi and Hitachi, represented at this meeting, in investing in the modernization of Romania’s railway system (Hitachi) and the development of public transport (Mitsubishi). Keidanren is Japan’s leading business organization, bringing together major Japanese corporations such as Toyota Motor Corporation, Mitsubishi Corporation, Sumitomo Corporation, Mitsui & Co., Sony, Panasonic, and Hitachi, Ltd. Keidanren member companies contribute approximately 300–420 trillion yen (~$2.25–3.15 trillion), representing approximately 50–70% of Japan’s GDP. Keidanren member companies support and promote Japanese investment abroad. In recent years, according to JETRO and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Keidanren companies have allocated over $130 billion in foreign direct investment. Toshiaki Higashihara, representative of Hitachi, Yoji Saito, representative of Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, and Ichiro Hara, director general of Keidanren, welcomed Romania’s invitation.

He discussed the increase in Japanese investment in Romania with parliamentarian Yasutoshi Nishimura (House of Representatives), former Minister of Economy, who is very knowledgeable about Romania. President Abrudean thanked the important collaborator and special advisor to the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for his significant contribution to the development of Romanian-Japanese economic relations and for his support for the Romania-Japan Strategic Partnership. The two concluded that Romania must become a major tourist hub in Eastern Europe, as Japanese tourists particularly appreciate Transylvania. The Japanese parliamentarian expressed his admiration for the textile industry in Romania, which he was able to experience firsthand during his visit to Romania.

At the end of the two working days in Japan, in Osaka and Tokyo, I would like to thank the Romanian Senate, President Abrudean, and all the institutions that made this high-level visit possible, thus honoring the remarkable Strategic Partnership we have enjoyed with Japan since March 2023,” said Raetchi.