Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan Eisuke Mori On 14 September, he arrived in Kyiv on his first visit to Ukraine. This is also the first visit to the country by the head of one of the chambers of the Japanese parliament since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Mori plans to meet with representatives of the government and the Verkhovna Rada to discuss further support for Kyiv and areas of bilateral cooperation.
Briefly about the main points
- Eisuke Mori is visiting Ukraine for the first time as Speaker of the Japanese House of Representatives.
- He will be staying in Ukraine until 15 September.
- Meetings with the government and the Verkhovna Rada are scheduled.
- The visit follows on from the talks between Mori and Stefanchuk in Paris.
- Topics include demining, medical assistance and reconstruction.
The Speaker of the Japanese Parliament’s first visit since 2022
Mori chairs the House of Representatives — the lower house of Japan’s National Diet. According to data Jiji Press, no leader of either house of the Japanese Parliament has visited Ukraine since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion.
The Japanese side has announced that the Speaker will remain in Ukraine until 15 September. The programme includes talks with representatives of the Ukrainian Government and the Verkhovna Rada, during which he is due to reaffirm Japan’s solidarity with Ukraine.
The visit continues the talks at the G7 parliamentary summit in Paris
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk announced Mori’s arrival and reminded everyone of their meeting on the sidelines of the summit G7 in Paris. Their bilateral meeting took place on 11 September.
The Parliamentary Summit took place on 10–12 September and was attended by the leaders of the lower houses of the G7 parliaments, the President of the European Parliament and the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada. In a joint declaration, the participants reaffirmed their support for Ukraine, its sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as their intention to continue providing assistance to achieve a just and lasting peace.
Stefanchuk described the Japanese Speaker’s visit as a continuation of the dialogue between the two countries. According to him, Mori will be able to see the consequences of Russian aggression and hear first-hand about Ukraine’s current needs.
Demining, reconstruction and humanitarian projects are among the topics for discussion
During the talks in Paris, the parties discussed further Japan’s involvement in humanitarian projects, including demining, medical aid, the country’s reconstruction and support for Ukrainian children. Stefanchuk described Japan at the time as an important partner for Ukraine in the financial, humanitarian and energy sectors.
Mori gave assurances that the Japanese people would continue to support the Ukrainian people. A specific practical context for the discussions is the Emergency Recovery Programme through JICA, which the Japanese side has extended until the end of March 2027. It covers, in particular, housing for internally displaced persons, transport, heating, energy efficiency and the processing of debris from the destruction.
According to Stefanchuk, a substantive discussion is planned in Kyiv on further support and opportunities for cooperation between parliaments and states.
