Saudi Arabia-Japan; Strategic Partnership and Common Vision

Since they started in 1958, relations and cooperation in various fields between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Japan have been witnessing steady growth.

 To strengthen relations, to the benefit of both countries, His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, visited Japan in September 2016. He met with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the two sides launched the “Saudi-Japan Vision 2030”, under which cooperation would reach a strategic stage, not limited to oil aspects, that serves the interests of the two countries.

 Moreover, the historic visit of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to Japan in March 2017 lent strong support to this strategic economic cooperation. The King’s ambitious and promising visions and ideas resulted in the signing of many agreements and partnerships, including a draft memorandum of cooperation in implementing the Saudi-Japan Vision 2030, which would push economic relations to new heights, to reflect the strong relationship, which moved from the typical export of oil and import of cars to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

 Bilateral ties witnessed an important turning point during the visit of HRH Prince the Crown Prince to Japan in 2019. The visit came upon the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and in response to the invitation from the Japanese government, as HRH the Crown Prince participated in the G20 summit in Osaka.

 The visit resulted in a qualitative leap in historical relations between Riyadh and Tokyo, where many agreements were signed between the two countries, including promoting cultural exchange, combating the counterfeiting of products, boosting SMEs and enhancing their competitiveness in global markets, the energy sector, the industrial field, the field of international development and investment, the exchange of information, as well as the news sector.

 The joint “Saudi-Japan Vision 2030” includes nine sectors: food and agricultural security, media and entertainment, medical care, high-quality infrastructure, finance and investment, competitive industries, energy, SMEs construction, culture, sport, and education, with 65 Saudi and Japanese government entities participating in the vision.

 In terms of trade, the two countries have close trade relations, where the trade exchange volume in 2022 amounted to $47.489 billion, marking a surplus of $34.052 billion for the Kingdom, where Japan received Saudi exports worth $40.771 billion, of which $39.779 billion for oil exports, while the Kingdom imported goods worth $6.719 billion.

 The number of Japanese companies registered in the Kingdom stood at 101, including 38 companies in the Eastern Region, 37 companies in Riyadh Region, and 23 companies in Makkah Region, with a total commercial registry capital of some $4,749,706. These companies are active in the manufacturing, construction, administrative, professional, scientific and technical services, wholesale and retail trade, information and communications, with 13,878 employees, including 57% Saudis.

 On the other hand, the number of Saudi companies investing in Japan is 66, mainly Aramco, SABIC, ACWA Power, and Saudi International Petrochemical Company (Sipchem). Saudi Arabia’s investment capital in Japan in 2020 was estimated at $102.6 million.