G7 Special Issue 1: Japan and JICA’s Role in Supporting Ukraine, a Critical Issue Facing the International Community
The G7 Summit of the Group of Seven (G7 Summit) will be held in Hiroshima on May 19-21. Japan will chair this year’s G7 Summit and lead discussions on various issues facing the international community. Taking this opportunity, we will consider the current status and future challenges of important issues facing the international community today, as well as Japan’s contribution and JICA’s cooperation. The first session will focus on assistance to Ukraine more than a year after the start of the Russian invasion.
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, which began last February, is a global-scale problem. The world was shocked by this outrage, which ignored international law (such as the UN Charter), which the world had built toward peace based on reflections from the world wars, and unilaterally trampled on the sovereignty and territory of other countries by force. There is a fear that the international order, which is formed by the rule of law and the international community based on the principle of independence and equality of nations, may be destroyed, and universal values such as freedom, democracy, and human rights are under severe challenge. This is a serious problem facing the world, and not just a war between two countries, Ukraine and Russia.
Japan and other G7 nations were quick to announce and implement their support for Ukraine and sanctions against Russia. While the fighting has continued for more than a year, Prime Minister Kishida stated at a press conference in February of this year, “We must steadily implement support for Ukraine and sanctions against Russia and restore world peace and order based on the rule of law, including the UN Charter and international law, so that we will not allow any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo through force. Japan, as the chairing country of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, expressed its determination to take the lead in forging unity on the Ukraine issue.
As a peaceful nation, Japan continues to provide assistance that is close to the people, drawing on its experience and strengths. We have provided materials and equipment that meet local needs, such as generators and electric power-related equipment for overwintering assistance, construction equipment and demining equipment for restoration and reconstruction, and other items that take advantage of Japan’s technological capabilities. In addition, sharing of knowledge and experience based on the experience of reconstruction from World War II and the Great East Japan Earthquake is also needed to build a more resilient postwar Ukraine.
JICA’s first assistance to a war-torn country: based on the trust built up by the Japanese government JICA is playing a major role in the implementation of this assistance, and in September 2022, JICA established the “Ukraine Support Office” to ensure the prompt delivery of necessary assistance. The following three pillars are in place and comprehensive efforts are underway.
In particular, in the third area of support for recovery and reconstruction, we need to make long-term efforts, ranging from the short-term support required now to medium- to long-term support for the postwar period. We will promote cooperation focusing on four areas, including the development of infrastructure for full-scale restoration, reconstruction of social infrastructure and other livelihoods, reconstruction of agriculture and other industries that are key industries, and strengthening of governance.
JICA is strongly required to play the role of a link between Ukraine’s needs and Japan’s own solutions,” says Toru Kobayakawa, head of JICA’s Ukraine Support Office.
In fact, this was the first time for JICA to provide assistance to a country at war. Even under such circumstances, JICA has been able to quickly obtain information on what is needed in Ukraine and carefully absorb it, thanks to the relationship of trust that JICA has built up through its past cooperation with Ukraine.
Taking advantage of our cooperative relationship, we quickly decided to provide mobile relay equipment and filming equipment to the Ukrainian Public Broadcasting Service, which continues its news activities amidst the destruction of its facilities during the war, in order to realize prompt and accurate on-site reporting. In addition, our continued cooperation in improving Ukraine’s urban waste disposal capacity even before the invasion has led to our current support for debris disposal, which is the foundation for wartime restoration and reconstruction.
And in support and training for the removal of landmines and unexploded ordnance in Ukraine, JICA continued cooperation with the Mine Action Center in Cambodia, with which JICA has cooperated for many years, including the training of personnel to engage in landmine clearance in Ukraine using Japanese-made demining equipment. Both of these cases were based on cooperation that JICA had been building up for some time and were able to respond quickly.
© Source JICA
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