“Ocean is wide and huge” (Letter from Ambassador in July)
2021/7/30
Dear Friends,
I hope that this letter would find you well in the middle of warm summer. Here in Copenhagen, July has seen so many continuous sunny days. It is drier than in Japan. People here grasp every opportunity for sunshine, and enjoy sun bathing around ports and beaches.
“Japan and Denmark are both marine nations, aren’t we?” I was so greeted by Ms. Anne Steffensen, Director General of Danish Shipping in December 2019 during my first call to her office to introduce myself. For about an hour, we had an interesting discussion on possible cooperation between our two countries over UNCLOS( United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) , marine transportation, climate change, safety of navigation, IMO (International Maritime Organization) and so on. From time to time, Ms. Steffensen has enlightened me about Denmark with her knowledge and experiences, including her previous mission to serve as Danish Ambassador to the UK.
Exchanges between Japan and Denmark were also initiated by the encounters of our ancestors who crossed huge oceans. In 1846, prior to the conclusion of the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation in 1867, Vice Admiral Steen Bille on board of “Galathea”, a Danish military ship reached off the coast of Sagami gulf. In 1873, the mission led by Mr. IWAKURA Tomomi from Japan visited Denmark. Since then, Denmark and Japan have deepened friendship relations through oceans as the nations based on foreign trade.
The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense announced a new personnel assignment in January 2021. That was a new post which is specifically in charge of marine security issues as the issue is becoming more important in recent year. It was pointed out that a series of pirates attacks on Danish vessels sailing off the coast of Gulf of Guinea was one of the elements which prompted this personnel decision. The Government of Denmark has steadfastly strengthened its measures including the decision to send a frigate to the area, responding to the requests from Maersk, the largest shipping company and others to act as soon as possible. On top of that, in February 2020, Denmark launched European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz (EMASOH) with Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherland and Portugal to secure freedom of navigation in the Middle East, sent a frigate and assumed the commanding post since 2021.
Japan, as a member of G7, provided to the coastal countries of the Gulf of Guinea training for marine crime enforcement capacity building since 2017 and donated one million dollars to IMO, thus contributing to capacity building of marine security for the middle and western African countries. In parallel to that, Japan has enhanced diplomatic efforts for securing peace and stability in Middle East and has dispatched a destroyer and used patrol aircraft of Self Defense Forces to gather information in Middle East ocean to secure the safety of Japanese vessels since 2020.
It is important to achieve stability and prosperity of international community through oceans. In 2016, Japan announced “Free and Open Indo Pacific” at the 6th Tokyo International Conference on Development (TICAD) in Kenya. Then-Prime Minister ABE stated as follows;
“When you cross the seas of Asian and the Indian Ocean and come to Nairobi, you then understand very well that what connects Asia and Africa is the sea lanes. What will give a stability and prosperity to the world is none other than the enormous liveliness brought forth through the union of two free and open oceans and two continents. Japan bears the responsibility of fostering the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans and of Asia and Africa into a place that values freedom, the rule of law, and the market economy, free from force or coercion, and making it prosperous.”
The US, Australia, India, ASEAN and other countries have promoted cooperation in “Free and Open Indo Pacific” with Japan since then and Japan has kept exchanges of views with Denmark and EU member states. In April this year, EU announced its Indo Pacific strategy, expressing its intention to take policies toward the same direction as Japan.
“Ocean is wide and huge” is the first line of a Japanese folksong, which reminds me of those two months when I toured for the first time through Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines on board the “Ship for South East Asian Youths 1982”. The Pacific Ocean I saw with the young men and women from ASEAN and Japan remains in my mind so clearly. In 2020, ASEAN announced its own outlook for Indo Pacific cooperation, focusing on further maritime cooperation, connectivity, the UN sustainable development goals, and economy. Japan will surely continue to attach utmost importance to cooperation with ASEAN as well. Ocean is wide, huge, free, open and for everyone. “Moon rises and sun sets” is the second and last line of the song. I believe that Denmark and Japan together with the rest of the world can continue to strive for such peaceful and beautiful seas and will pass them on to our future generations.
I wish you well and look forward to seeing you on this page or somewhere else in August.
Please enjoy your summer until then.
In front of Grundtvig’s Church in Copenhagen (Photo by the writer in July 2021)
I hope that this letter would find you well in the middle of warm summer. Here in Copenhagen, July has seen so many continuous sunny days. It is drier than in Japan. People here grasp every opportunity for sunshine, and enjoy sun bathing around ports and beaches.
“Japan and Denmark are both marine nations, aren’t we?” I was so greeted by Ms. Anne Steffensen, Director General of Danish Shipping in December 2019 during my first call to her office to introduce myself. For about an hour, we had an interesting discussion on possible cooperation between our two countries over UNCLOS( United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) , marine transportation, climate change, safety of navigation, IMO (International Maritime Organization) and so on. From time to time, Ms. Steffensen has enlightened me about Denmark with her knowledge and experiences, including her previous mission to serve as Danish Ambassador to the UK.
Skagen where two oceans meet (North Sea on the left and Baltic Sea on the right. Photo by the writer in August 2020)
Exchanges between Japan and Denmark were also initiated by the encounters of our ancestors who crossed huge oceans. In 1846, prior to the conclusion of the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation in 1867, Vice Admiral Steen Bille on board of “Galathea”, a Danish military ship reached off the coast of Sagami gulf. In 1873, the mission led by Mr. IWAKURA Tomomi from Japan visited Denmark. Since then, Denmark and Japan have deepened friendship relations through oceans as the nations based on foreign trade.
The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense announced a new personnel assignment in January 2021. That was a new post which is specifically in charge of marine security issues as the issue is becoming more important in recent year. It was pointed out that a series of pirates attacks on Danish vessels sailing off the coast of Gulf of Guinea was one of the elements which prompted this personnel decision. The Government of Denmark has steadfastly strengthened its measures including the decision to send a frigate to the area, responding to the requests from Maersk, the largest shipping company and others to act as soon as possible. On top of that, in February 2020, Denmark launched European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz (EMASOH) with Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherland and Portugal to secure freedom of navigation in the Middle East, sent a frigate and assumed the commanding post since 2021.
A Danish frigate to be sent to the Gulf of Guinea from November 2021.
Photo above is a Danish frigate Iver Huitfeldt. The actual frigate that will be sent to the Gulf of Guinea is Esbern Snare.
(Photo: The Danish Armed Forces)
Photo above is a Danish frigate Iver Huitfeldt. The actual frigate that will be sent to the Gulf of Guinea is Esbern Snare.
(Photo: The Danish Armed Forces)
Japan, as a member of G7, provided to the coastal countries of the Gulf of Guinea training for marine crime enforcement capacity building since 2017 and donated one million dollars to IMO, thus contributing to capacity building of marine security for the middle and western African countries. In parallel to that, Japan has enhanced diplomatic efforts for securing peace and stability in Middle East and has dispatched a destroyer and used patrol aircraft of Self Defense Forces to gather information in Middle East ocean to secure the safety of Japanese vessels since 2020.
It is important to achieve stability and prosperity of international community through oceans. In 2016, Japan announced “Free and Open Indo Pacific” at the 6th Tokyo International Conference on Development (TICAD) in Kenya. Then-Prime Minister ABE stated as follows;
“When you cross the seas of Asian and the Indian Ocean and come to Nairobi, you then understand very well that what connects Asia and Africa is the sea lanes. What will give a stability and prosperity to the world is none other than the enormous liveliness brought forth through the union of two free and open oceans and two continents. Japan bears the responsibility of fostering the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans and of Asia and Africa into a place that values freedom, the rule of law, and the market economy, free from force or coercion, and making it prosperous.”
The US, Australia, India, ASEAN and other countries have promoted cooperation in “Free and Open Indo Pacific” with Japan since then and Japan has kept exchanges of views with Denmark and EU member states. In April this year, EU announced its Indo Pacific strategy, expressing its intention to take policies toward the same direction as Japan.
“Ocean is wide and huge” is the first line of a Japanese folksong, which reminds me of those two months when I toured for the first time through Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines on board the “Ship for South East Asian Youths 1982”. The Pacific Ocean I saw with the young men and women from ASEAN and Japan remains in my mind so clearly. In 2020, ASEAN announced its own outlook for Indo Pacific cooperation, focusing on further maritime cooperation, connectivity, the UN sustainable development goals, and economy. Japan will surely continue to attach utmost importance to cooperation with ASEAN as well. Ocean is wide, huge, free, open and for everyone. “Moon rises and sun sets” is the second and last line of the song. I believe that Denmark and Japan together with the rest of the world can continue to strive for such peaceful and beautiful seas and will pass them on to our future generations.
I wish you well and look forward to seeing you on this page or somewhere else in August.
Please enjoy your summer until then.
| Yours sincerely, |
| MIYAGAWA Manabu |
| Embassy of Japan in the Kingdom of Denmark |
In front of Grundtvig’s Church in Copenhagen (Photo by the writer in July 2021)