Japanese Embassies Worldwide Offer Consultation Services To Counter Coercion; Kamikawa: AI an ‘Existential Threat to Humanity’
13:52 JST, March 11, 2024
Japanese embassies worldwide have started providing consultation service to Japanese companies in an effort to counter economic coercion from China and other countries, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said in a speech in Tokyo on Monday.
The government will seek to understand and respond to specific cases of economic coercion through public-private collaboration.
Economic coercion is the act of unilaterally applying pressure on a country in order to force the country to accept specific demands or policies. The pressure often includes restricting imports and exports of critical materials. China’s tightening of export controls over rare earth elements, which are essential for producing electronic devices, is one example.
In her speech at Keidanren Kaikan, where the headquarters of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) is located, the foreign minister emphasized that economic coercion is tantamount to weaponizing an economically superior position for political purposes. She called on businesses to actively use the new service on offer at Japanese embassies, saying, “Collecting evidence is essential in order to counter [the coercion].”
Kamikawa also referred to generative artificial intelligence: “We are responding to [generative AI] with a sense of crisis, viewing it as an existential threat to humanity.”
She emphasized Japan’s intention to lead the discussion on reviewing the principles on AI adopted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
"Politics" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Promotes Revised NISA Investment Program to Young People; Kishida Focusing on Moving Money From Savings to Investment in a Safe Environment
-
“High Probability” 2 MSDF Patrol Helicopters Collided near Torishima Island; 1 Dead, 7 Others Onboard Missing (Update 2)
-
Russia to Ban Non-Registered Vessels from Waters Around Northern Territories From April 11 to 17
-
Japan-U.K. Foreign Ministers Confirm Deepening Cooperation in Security Field; Kamikawa Underscores Importance of NATO Ties
-
Japan Ruling Party Struggles in ‘Kingdom of Conservatives’; Liberal Democratic Party Battered By Fundraising Scandal
JN ACCESS RANKING
- China Mutes Memorialization of Reformer Hu Yaobang; Memories Could Spark Critique of Xi Administration
- Shinkansen Services Suspended After Man ‘Searches for Phone’ on Tracks; Disruption Affects About 14,000 Passengers
- U.S. 7th Fleet officer Arrested on Suspicion of Stealing Sushi, Sashimi, Chicken at Kanagawa Shopping Mall; Suspect Caught Mid-Meal
- UNRWA Director Describes Catastrophic Destruction in Gaza; Says Relief Trucks Robbed, ‘People’s Hearts Destroyed’
- JAL Airplane Experiences Radio Malfunction During Flight, Lands Safely By Relying on Light Signals