Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed Monday with his Kuwaiti counterpart, Sheik Jaber al-Mubarak al-Hamad al-Sabah, to launch a bilateral dialogue among foreign and defense policy officials on ensuring the security of sea lanes that are vital to transporting crude oil.
The two leaders also confirmed that Japan will expand cooperation in developing infrastructure such as sewers, subway systems and oil refinery facilities in Kuwait, according to a joint statement by the leaders.
They expressed serious concern about the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government and stressed the importance of the investigations by weapons experts from the U.N., Japanese officials said.