Japan and the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council will hold preliminary talks on a free-trade agreement in late May, government sources said Tuesday.
The GCC, to which oil producers Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait belong, has asked Japan to start FTA negotiations and the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren), the country's biggest business lobby, urged the government in September to launch them as soon as possible.
Foreign Minister Taro Aso told ministry officials last week to promote talks with the GCC, saying it was necessary for Japan to reinforce its economic ties with the Persian Gulf states in order to secure a stable supply of energy resources.
Japan's crude oil imports from the Middle East account for about 90 percent of its total supply.
The GCC has been in FTA talks with the European Union, China and India, but none of them has concluded agreements with the entity.
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