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Message from Yasuo TANABE, Japan-side Managing Director 

Yasuo TANABE

Since 1987, the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation has a long history as a joint venture between the Japanese government (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) and the European Commission (DG Grow). It has become a general incorporated foundation in its legal status in Japan and breathed new life into both name and reality.

This reflects the fact that EU-Japan relations have risen to new heights, as seen in the entry into force of the Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) in 2019.

After that, in 2021, Green Alliance between the EU and Japan was agreed at the EU-Japan Summit. Under the Green Alliance, the Centre is required to play a role as a facilitator of cooperation in the business field.

In addition, at the 2022 Japan-EU Summit, a Digital Partnership between the EU and Japan was agreed on, and the Centre is considered to be a cooperation mechanism.

In this way, Japan-EU relations are required to further strengthen cooperation, centering on the global issues such as green, digital,  and economic security fields.

Based on 35 years of activity experience, the Center is currently strongly implementing activities such as (1) policy information provision, policy dialogue, (2) promotion of business matching, (3) human resources development, and (4) promotion of science and technology innovation cooperation. Through these activities, we will focus on further deepening the cooperative relationship between Japan and the EU, mainly in the green and digital fields.

We look forward to the continued support and guidance of all concerned parties.

Background

Yasuo Tanabe has education background with BA in Law of the University of Tokyo and MA in Political Science of Stanford University.

He had worked for Japanese government since joining the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI, then renamed METI) in 1978 for 32 years, including Director of Europe Division of METI and Deputy Director General of Economic Affairs Bureau of Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). During the government career, he has been mainly involved in trade and energy sector. At MOFA, he served as a trade negotiator for economic partnership agreements with ASEAN countries, Switzerland, Peru and preparatory stage for EU-Japan EPA. He also served as a member of the Governing Board of the International Energy Agency during his careear at Agency for Natural Resources and Energy.

After the government, he has worked for Hitachi as a senior executive for government and external relations (2010-2019). He was involved in many infrastructure projects of energy, railway and water in the world and in coordination with Japanese government on trade, energy and innovation policies.

After Hitachi, he has been advising companies and organizations in international relations and energy sector, including the Research Institute of Economy, Trade, and Industries (RIETI) and the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ).

Since 2020, he is the Managing Director (Japan-side) of the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation.

He has written books and articles on energy issues. He has given lectures at the University of Tokyo and University of Hawaii.

Activities/Articles 

APR/2024 Article on Japan's GX Strategy on RIETI Website "Japan should promote its GX strategy to the world
AUG/2023 Lecture at 32nd Annual Conference of the Northeast Asia Economic Forum
'Japan’s Green Transformation (GX) Strategy toward 2050'
JULY/2023 Column on RIETI website
'Promote Multifaceted Japan-EU Cooperation on Supply Chain Resilience'
JULY/2023

Column on IEEJ website
Report on the webinar hosted by US-Japan Council Unlocking Japan's Renewable Energy Future - The Total Mobilisation Required to Introduce Renewable Energy-

JUNE/2023

Column on RIETI website
'Japan must Lead the World in Circular Economy Initiatives and Rule Making, in Partnership with EU'

27/MAR/2023 Contributed article: 'Japan must lead global efforts to reduce methane emissions - Participation in Council Roundtable on Reducing Methane Emissions'
4/JAN/2023 Column on RIETI website
Strengthen EU-Japan relations for a new era
2/DEC/2022 Contributed article: 'How Europe will respond to the energy crisis', seminar participation (in the website of the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan)
11/NOV/2022 Current status and challenges of the EU Energy and Climate Strategy:Japan's response (Lecture at SPEED study group)
21/SEP/2022 Report on the seminar 'Economic security issues and EU-Japan industrial cooperation under STRATEGIC AUTONOMY'.
'Promote EU-Japan Cooperation on Economic Security' (RIETI website)
30/AUG/2022 Column on RIETI website
Report of the Webinar of US-Japan Council "US- Japan Climate Partnership: Increasing the Availability of Affordable Clean Energy"
18/JUL/2022 Lecture at Northeast Asia Economic Forum Annual Conference (English PDF)
1/JUL/2022 EU Geopolitical and Geoeconomic Strategy(Slide of the Lecture at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Public Policy)
23/JUN/2022

RIETI Webinar on 23 June 2022
Carbon Pricing, From a Burden to an Opportunity? Testimony and shared vision from EDF, Europe’s leading electric utility (RIETI website - Handout, Video)
Article by Yasuo TANABE (RIETI website)

19/APR/2022 Speech at GLOBE Japan about [CBAM: EU policy venture]
4/MAR/2022 Our webinar "Carbon pricing towards net zero" was featured in the evening edition of the Nikkei newspaper on 4 March.

15/FEB/2022

Tanabe's contribution to the seminar on 27 January (RIETI website)

3/DEC/2021 Lecture at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Public Policy (Slide)
24/NOV/2021 Presentation at Atlantic Council-Howard Baker Forum workshop
8/NOV/2021 Presentation at the Northeast Asia Economic Forum (Slide)

21/OCT/2021

Article by Yasuo Tanabe, Executive Director (RIETI website)

6/OCT/2021

External lecture by Managing Director Yasuo Tanabe (Japan-America Business Conference)

10/SEP/2021

Contributed by Yasuo Tanabe, Executive Director (U.S.-Japan Council)

10/AUG/2021

Our webinar "Towards Carbon Neutrality" was featured in the evening edition of the Nikkei newspaper on 20 August.

19/JUL/2021

Column by Yasuo Tanabe (Institute of Energy Economics, Japan, IEEJ)

2/JUL/2021

Column by Yasuo Tanabe (RIETI website)

31/JUL/2020

Managing Director Tanabe contributed to the Nikkei Shimbun's "Shiken-Takken (Personal Views and Opinions)". 

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