Consulate-General of Japan in Houston

Thank you for your kind introduction.  Please allow me to offer my sincere congratulations upon the opening of a new office for Iino Lines (U.S.A) here in Houston.  This is an exciting event for me to attend as the office will open many new possibilities for Iino to both enhance their current operations and stand as strong evidence of the growing exchange and trade between Japan and Texas.

As the Consul General of Japan in Houston, I have spent the past year and a half in this post attending many ceremonies related to the opening of offices and groundbreaking ceremonies for the construction of Japanese companies.  While communication serves to build businesses, it is a virtual development, largely intangible.  The key to building a strong economic relationship between countries therefore lies in transportation, in the physical connections that draw our nations together. 

Therefore, this development for Iino no doubt reflects the increasing business and trade between Japan and the United States, and their choice of Houston is proof that the great state of Texas occupies a pivotal position in these bilateral relations.  I have always told the Texas leadership who I meet that even the future of Texas and Japan is bigger, thanks to a key coalition between the development of high technology, energy and Texas’s central location in the United States.  Today’s ceremony is further proof of this positive statement.

I would like to commend Iino President Mr. Tomoyuki Sekine for making  a wise decision in setting a part of their business in Houston, and the President and Director of the Houston offices, Mr. Yoichiro Anzai, will surely fulfil this important role in our two countries’ exchange.

Again, please accept my deep congratulations on such an accomplishment and all my best wishes for the future of your exciting venture.