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総領事のヒューストン通信 |
天皇誕生日祝賀レセプションでの挨拶
在ヒューストン日本国総領事 大澤勉
Good evening Councilmember Khan, Secretary Connor, Honorary Consul General of Japan at Oklahoma City Hardin, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
I am happy to welcome everybody here this evening as we celebrate the 74th birthday of the Emperor of Japan.His Majesty was born on December 23rd, 1933, and ascended the throne in 1989.January 1st of 2008 will mark the beginning of the 20th year of his reign.
I am happy to see so many of you here tonight.I took my post here in Houston in September, and although I recognize many faces, some of you I haven’t met yet, and I hope to have a chance to speak with all of you this evening.
I am very pleased to be here in Texas and have been impressed by everything I have seen so far.Houston is an incredibly diverse and multicultural city with friendly people.I have also had the opportunities to visit Austin, Dallas and San Antonio, and looking forward to seeing the rest of this great state.Among the many people I have met so far include Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, Texas Secretary of State Phil Wilson, and the mayors of Ausin and Dallas, and all have affirmed their commitment to promoting friendly exchange between our countries.
Unfortunately, however, many people in Japan do not know much about Texas, despite it being one of the most important states in the US and having what would be the world’s eleventh largest economy were it an independent nation.As Consul General, I will work not only to strengthen the ties that bind Texas and Japan together, but also to increase awareness of this great state within Japan.
2007 has been an exciting year for both Texas and Oklahoma, the two states within my jurisdiction.In October, United States Ambassador to Japan and Fort Worth native Thomas Schieffer spoke in Houston at the Asia Society of Texas, where he discussed the increasing importance of Asia in the world economy, and the reliance the United States and Japan have had and will continue to have upon each other.
In addition, 2007 marked the 35th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Houston and the Japanese port city of Chiba, and the celebrations included a delegation from Houston to Chiba in October led by Councilmember Khan.The members of the delegation met with the mayor of Chiba and discussed ways to deepen the sister-city relations.
April was a very important month for Japan here in the Houston area, with JPMorgan Chase Bank naming it “Japan Month,” and the 14th annual Houston Japan Festival taking place, which continues to grow in popularity and saw an attendance this year of more than 20,000 people.Although I just arrived in Houston in September, I am very much looking forward to attending the Japan Festival next year.
And just this past Sunday, the Houston Astros signed Japanese second-baseman Kazuo Matsui to replace retiring icon Craig Biggio.Matsui’s coming to Houston is especially exciting for us, as it will raise awareness of Houston within Japan, and, without a doubt, encourage more Japanese tourists to come and see what this great city has to offer.
Oklahoma has had an exciting year too, having just celebrated its 100th anniversary of statehood last month.Oklahoma, which became the 46th state when it joined the union in 1907, has grown to become a major trading partner for Japan, exporting almost $200 million worth of goods to Japan last year.I am especially pleased that Honorary Consul General of Japan Lloyd Hardin has come all the way from his office in Oklahoma City to be with us this evening.
This year has been an eventful one for Japan as well.In September, Japan’s new Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda assumed office, and his first visit took him to WashingtonDC for a summit meeting with President George W. Bush in November.At the meeting, both leaders vowed to work together to fight terrorism, deliver positive results in the North Korea nuclear talks, and further strengthen the alliance between the United States and Japan.Prime Minister Fukuda also discussed his initiative to strengthen ties between the two countries by promoting intellectual and grassroots exchange and supporting Japanese language education within the US.Japan is also busily preparing for the 2008 G-8 summit meeting and the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, two very important international meetings which will take place in Japan next year.
Finally, I would like to stress that an annual study shows that the image of the United States within Japan is positive, with more than three-quarters of people in Japan holding a favorable impression of the US, a very promising sign for future relations between the two countries.
Now I would like to conclude my remarks by thanking you once again for joining us this evening.I wish everybody a very pleasant time.Thank you very much