Interview series: the people behind EU-Japan cooperation

EU-Japan cooperation takes many forms. Time and time again, we read news reports about agreements signed between the EU, or its Member States, and Japan, about trade missions and cultural events, about joint innovation and dialogue. But the question remains: Who are the people behind these efforts? What is their story and how did they become involved in developing international cooperation? 

The EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation is happy to introduce the sixth installment in the series of articles meant to introduce the individuals and organizations making EU-Japan collaboration possible.

We hope you enjoy a snippet of our interview with H.E. André J. Spiteri, the Ambassador of the Republic of Malta to Japan.

Q: Until 2020, you have been the Non-Resident Ambassador of the Republic of Malta to Japan. Could you tell us a little about the shift in Maltese policy to establish the Embassy of the Republic of Malta in Japan? What prompted the change and were there any difficulties in the process?
André: Before me, the Ambassador of Malta in China and Beijing was also accredited to Japan. The new government policy was that now there would be a Non-Resident Ambassador only to Japan and I was the first person in this position. One of my first plans and ambitions as an ambassador was to tell the Foreign Minister that we needed to open an Embassy in Japan since it is very important to be physically present in Japan. Vice versa, Japan didn’t have an embassy in Malta - it was the Japanese Ambassador in Rome that was accredited to Malta. It is very important for bilateral relations to develop, to have an embassy in each other’s countries. Of course, the decision to open a resident embassy was driven also by the growing importance of Japan as a strategic partner for Malta. Suffice to say, there was the increase in bilateral trade and tourism, which helped put Japan higher on the agenda of Malta economically speaking. There was an increasing number of collaborations between our countries also in education. Malta has a very active sector of learning English as a foreign language, and Japanese students go to Malta with this aim.
One of the important milestones for this development of policy was the first official visit of a Japanese Prime Minister to Malta. The late Shinzo Abe was the first Prime Minister to officially visit Malta in May 2017, and this was the first Malta-Japan Summit. Next year there was the follow-up visit of our former Prime Minister together with a trade mission to Japan. Two Malta-Japan Summits in two years, which was unprecedented. This put our bilateral relations to new heights, and we kickstarted the process of opening the Embassy in Japan. Of course, this was challenging because we had to open during a global pandemic in 2020. That time, as we all remember, was not very easy. There were administrative challenges, for example, opening a bank account, which wasn’t simple at the time, but we managed it and are very pleased with the progress. Plus, we are very honoured that likewise, Japan opened an embassy in Malta this year. We are living history!

Q: What is the Malta Pavilion focused on and what do you expect to gain from the participation in the Osaka Expo?
André: In a nutshell, the Pavilion will focus on Malta’s rich cultural heritage, innovative spirit, and commitment to sustainability. We aim to highlight Malta as a hub of creativity and innovation, with a particular emphasis on education, IT, gastronomy, AI, and Blue economy. Through our participation in the Osaka Expo, we hope to strengthen Malta’s brand on the global stage and in Japan – the name recognition. It is a golden chance to have these six months, a window to Japan, to do so.

The interview continues online, read the complete version here.