The 15th Japanese-German Forum was held in Berlin from October 12–14, 2006. Twenty-three participants gathered to discuss various issues including the regional situation in East Asia, energy security, common socio-economic challenges caused by aging populations, and meeting common challenges through innovation.
The meetings reaffirmed the commonalities in the international and domestic issues and situations affecting Germany and Japan, and confirmed the continuing need for close contacts and sharing of the experiences of each country.
Vice Chancellor Franz Muentefering held a reception for the participants on the final day of the meetings, where he stayed longer than scheduled, indicating his interest and appreciation of the value of the Forum.
At the end of the forum the Chairmen prepared a statement summarizing the discussions, which was presented to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chancellor Angela Merkel.
|
German Participants |
|
|
[Chairman] |
|
|
Bernhard SCHEUBLE |
CEO, Merz GmbH & Co. KGaA |
|
[Participants] |
|
|
Friederike BOSSE |
Secretary General, JDZB |
|
Florian COULMAS |
Director, German Institute for Japanese Studies, Tokyo |
|
Hans-Joachim DAERR |
Ambassador to Japan |
|
Otto Graf LAMBSDORFF |
Former Minister of Economics |
|
Hanns MAULL |
Professor, University of Trier |
|
Andreas MICHAELIS |
Director for Asian and Pacific Affairs, Foreign Office |
|
Matthias NASS |
Deputy Editor, DIE ZEIT |
|
Rüdiger POHL |
Professor, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg |
|
Heinz RIESENHUBER |
Member of German Parliament (Bundestag) (CDU); Former Minister for Research and Technology |
|
Günter STOCK |
President, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Science |
|
Franz WALDENBERGER |
Professor, Japan Centre, Ludwig-Maximilian University Munich |
|
Japanese Participants |
|
|
[Chairman] |
|
|
Yuzaburo MOGI |
President and CEO, Kikkoman Corporation |
|
[Participants] |
|
|
Shin’ichi KITAOKA |
Professor, University of Tokyo; Former Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Deputy Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations |
|
Kenji KOSAKA |
Member, House of Representatives (Liberal Democratic Party); Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology |
|
Tsutomu OKUBO |
Member, House of Councillors (Democratic Party of Japan) |
|
Yoshio OKUBO |
Executive Vice President, The Japan Foundation |
|
Hajime SASAKI |
Chairman of the Board, NEC Corporation |
|
Toshiyuki TAKANO |
Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany |
|
Hitoshi TANAKA |
Senior Fellow, Japan Center for International Exchange; Former Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs |
|
Koji WATANABE |
Senior Fellow, Japan Center for International Exchange; Former Japanese Ambassador to Russia |
|
Katsuyuki YAKUSHIJI |
Editor in Chief, Monthly Magazine RONZA |
|
Taizo YAKUSHIJI |
Member, Council for Science and Technology Policy, Cabinet Office |
|
Guest Speaker |
|
|
Gert G. WAGNER |
Head of German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) and Research Director at German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) |
Thursday, October 12
Session I: Changing Socio-Economic and Political Dynamics of Germany and Japan
Japanese Speaker: Katsuyuki YAKUSHIJI, Editor in Chief, Monthly Magazine RONZA
German Speaker: Matthias NASS, Deputy Editor, DIE ZEIT
Friday, October 13
Session II: German and Japanese Response to Threats to Regional Security
Japanese Speaker: Shinichi KITAOKA, Professor, University of Tokyo; Former Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Deputy Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations
German Speaker: Hanns MAULL, Professor, University of Trier
Session III: Common Socio-Economic Challenges Caused by Aging Population
Japanese Speaker: Kenji KOSAKA, Member, House of Representatives (LDP, Liberal Democratic Party); Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
German Speaker: Gert WAGNER, Head of German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) and Research Director at German Institute for Economic Research (DIW)
Saturday, October 14
Session IV: Meeting Common Challenges by Innovation
Japanese Speaker: Taizo YAKUSHIJI, Member, Council for Science and Technology Policy, Cabinet Office
German Speaker: Heinz RIESENHUBER, Member of German Parliament (Bundestag) (CDU, Christian Democratic Union of Germany); Former Minister for Research and Technology
