Speech at birthday celebrations for the Emperor of Japan

Consul General Okabe and Mrs Okabe, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen; it is a pleasure to be here with you tonight to join the celebration of the birthday of His Majesty The Emperor of Japan.

This event is a demonstration of the close friendship between Japan and New Zealand. It is great to see so many friends from both countries here.

Our two countries share a close relationship built on shared fundamental values and interests including democracy, a commitment to international law, promotion of human rights, multilateralism, and the promotion of peace and stability in our region.

With so many shared values, it is no surprise that the Japan-New Zealand relationship is so well developed. It encompasses close political ties, important trade and economic links, a vibrant people-to-people network and cultural exchanges.

The trade relationship with Japan in particular is one New Zealand's largest. Japan is New Zealand's third largest export market, our fourth largest trading partner overall, and an important source of investment. This year is the 50^th anniversary of the Japan-New Zealand Treaty of Commerce, which established formal trade links between our two countries.  

Links between businesses play a crucial part in our economic links and in the relationship overall. The Japan-New Zealand Business Council is an important means of bringing our business communities together. The input of businesses is particularly valuable in keeping the relationship dynamic. 

An example was the Japan-New Zealand Partnership Forum that took place in Japan in May. This International Business Forum event brought together business leaders and government figures to consider key issues facing business in both countries. It has helped add new momentum to our overall relationship. I understand planning is underway for another Forum in 2009.

Trade and business is only one aspect of our cooperation though. Our engagement with Japan has also grown this year in the areas of security and climate change. And of course our people-to-people links are very strong. 

I want to elaborate on this point because it is through our people-to-people links that most interaction between New Zealanders and Japanese takes place. While there is regular dialogue at the Government-to-Government and business level, there are countless exchanges every day between our tourists, students, and members of local communities.

Japan has long been an important source of tourists for New Zealand. In the year to October New Zealand welcomed nearly 111,000 visitors from Japan.  

Unfortunately these numbers have been declining in recent years, but we are making a significant effort to reverse this trend.  Tourism New Zealand has been working with the Japanese travel trade to come up with new ways to promote New Zealand to increasingly adventurous and discerning Japanese visitors.

These days it is about promoting "what to do" in New Zealand, not just "what to see". Our natural scenery will always be our biggest selling point but this is no longer enough to attract Japanese. They want to know more about what they can do, eat, and drink, and what the accommodation options are. 

We have strong relationships with Japan's travel industry. JTB, Japan and Asia's biggest travel agency, is a great supporter of New Zealand and has recently launched environmentally-friendly Qualmark Green holiday tours. And Tourism New Zealand recently hosted a group from the Japanese Walking Association to tie in with its newly-launched Kiwi Walk promotion. Tourism New Zealand is also working with the Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) to market New Zealand self-drive holidays, the first international destination JAF has chosen to promote.

Education links are also allowing our people to interact. Japan is New Zealand's third largest source of international students, with around 14,000 Japanese students in New Zealand. And Japanese is one of the most popular languages in New Zealand schools, providing further opportunities for exchanges. 

The Japan-New Zealand sister cities network adds real value to the relationship. There are 45 sister city relationships between our two countries, which allows all sorts of cultural, tourism, sports and educational exchanges to take place at the community level.

And as Minister for Ethnic Affairs I would like to make particular mention of the Japanese community in New Zealand. There are around 12,000 Japanese long-term residents in New Zealand. This community makes a significant cultural, economic and social contribution here in New Zealand and adds an extra strand to our bilateral relationship. 

Relations between New Zealand and Japan are clearly very mature. But that does not mean we can take the relationship for granted. In such a fast-moving regional environment, our countries need to ensure the relationship stays dynamic and keeps up with developments in the world around us. 

2008 was a good year for the relationship, highlighted by the visit of former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark to Japan in May. She and the then Prime Minister of Japan, Yasuo Fukuda agreed on a framework to strengthen the relationship and, significantly, to start a joint study of a bilateral "economic partnership agreement".  

My Government is committed not only to maintaining the strong links we have with Japan already, but also to working actively to strengthen the relationship. We are committed to moving forward on the joint study of a bilateral EPA. The study has the potential to lift the relationship significantly, and given the current global economic environment we need to take all measures to strengthen our economic performance. 

There is much more Japan and New Zealand can do to make the relationship even stronger. With close cooperation, I know our two countries can ensure that 2009 is another successful year for the relationship. 

Thank you.