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On October 13, DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada met with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, at party headquarters.
Okada conveyed his thanks to Rudd for his visit, and expressed his appreciation at being able to meet with him again, saying, “I am no longer serving as Minister for Foreign Affairs, but I believe that you had an extremely productive exchange with current Minister for Foreign Affairs Seiji Maehara at the United Nations recently, particularly with regard to the formation of a new grouping concerned with nuclear issues.”
Rudd commented “When we met in Tokyo last summer, we worked together on an international report for the International Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, and at the United Nations meeting this time, Minister Maehara and I took this to the next stage. Our aim is to create a more advanced agenda for nuclear non-proliferation in Europe, the Pacific and other regions that crosses regional boundaries.”
The meeting was also attended by Administration Committee Chair Makoto Taki and Director-General of the International Department Chinami Nishimura for the DPJ. The Australian Ambassador to Japan Murray McLean and a number of other senior officials from the embassy and the Australian Foreign Ministry were also in attendance.
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