Former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Chief Advisor for the Tokyo Conference, provided the opening address for the first session of the Open Forum held on the second day of the conference.

　Kishida emphasized the importance of 2025 as the anniversary of the end of the Second World War and of the founding of the United Nations before remarking on how important it is to protect multilateralism and the international order.

　"The international community has worked very hard for many years, making many sacrifices to build an international order based on the rule of law and multilateralism," he said. "Whatever happens, they must be protected."

　The world's resolve is now being tested, and Kishida went on to praise the theme of this year's conference, International cooperation and restoration of peace on the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, saying that it, "reveals the most fundamental problems in the world today."

　He expressed concerns about the growing number of voices around the world that do not see the value in multilateralism or in international organizations such as the UN, and instead are prioritizing the interests of their own countries.

　"A world dominated by countries motived only by their own self-interest could transform the formerly US-led free and open international order, and could change the very nature of the international community," Kishida explained. "I do not believe that this is the world we have been working to build over the last 80 years."

　"There has never been a time when global unity is as needed to uphold the rule of law and protect multilateralism as it is now," he continued, noting that while the G7 should be at the core of that effort, there has been some unease regarding unity among the G7 recently.

　"It would be unfortunate if the countries of the West were to be at odds with each other, acting to unilaterally impose their values on others rather than respect the values they share," he warned. "Discord like that will result in authoritarian countries with values different to ours coming out on top."

　Kishida also spoke about a potential ceasefire in the Ukraine War.

　"The issue lies in how the war is ended. The world wants a fair and lasting peace. If Ukraine's voice is not heard in the ceasefire negotiations, with only the opinion of the invader - Russia - accounted for, peace in the region will remain unstable," he said. "To guarantee a ceasefire and regional peace, we should not leave the work to Europe alone. We should also consider involving the UN and other parts of the international community."

⇒ Mr. Kishida's full address can be found at the link here (Japanese language only)

Why must we think about how international cooperation and peace are now being tested?

　Yasushi Kudo was next to take the stage and provided a welcoming address as President of The Genron NPO, organizers of the Tokyo Conference.

　Kudo spoke about how the Tokyo Conference was founded in 2017 out of concern about the potential breakdown of the international order based on the rule of law and multilateralism, which was built only through the immense effort made in the aftermath of the Second World War. He then stated that he believes that the situation is even more dire today.

　He explained that "the actions of President Trump, who does not recognize the value of international law or multilateralism" are a major factor, and that those actions could even have "a decisive impact on the future of the international community."

　He asked attendees to consider what needs to be done.

　"How do we defend a world based on rules, a world based on cooperation? What elements of democracy and the international order must be protected? We must think about what needs to be done to achieve this goal," Kudo concluded.

⇒ A summary of the five keynote speeches that followed the opening addresses can be found here.