EU-Japan Centre's newsletter - October 2021
Commissioner Breton in Japan to discuss digital partnership, semiconductor, industrial and technology cooperation.
Commissioner Thierry Breton, travelled to Japan at the end of September to engage with officials and industry leaders. This was an opportunity to discuss the upcoming European Chips Act and develop contacts on the broader digital partnership agreement with Japan which was announced in the EU Indo-Pacific Strategy.
On 28 September, Commissioner Breton met the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, the Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry, the Minister for Digital Transformation, the Chairman of the Board of NEC, and the CEO of Fujitsu.
The following day, on 29 September, Commissioner Breton met with the CEO of Tokyo Electron (TEL), one of the major Japanese semiconductor companies, and attended a round table discussion with 15 European and Japanese business representatives, including Mitsubishi Electric which co-chairs the EU-Japan Business Round table and invited the Commissioner to participate in the next BRT meeting on 4 November 2021.
These discussions laid out deliverables on 5G technologies, quantum computing, artificial intelligence and semiconductors. Commissioner Breton’s exchanges with counterparts in Japan come as the global shortage of semiconductors hampers European and Japanese companies, from automakers to broadband providers.
In the context of the new geopolitics surrounding semiconductors, these constructive exchanges with Japan officials and companies are useful when preparing the ground for the European Chips Act, building stable supply chains and strengthening the EU-Japan cooperation on chips and the broad digital partnership agreement.
The EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation will contribute to implement business cooperation on the above important topics of interest to the EU and Japan.
