On April 15, at the initiative of Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae, the AZEC Plus Summit on Energy Resilience was convened online with the participation of leaders and representatives from 16 Asian countries, including the 11 members of the Asia Zero Emission Community, together with the heads of three international organizations.
As tensions in the Middle East dramatically heighten the importance of energy resilience in the Indo-Pacific, POWERR Asia and AZEC 2.0 appear poised to become Japan’s new flagship regional initiatives.
Implementation tools are expected to include Japan Bank for International Cooperation loans, ODA finance by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, insurance by Nippon Export and Investment Insurance, and cooperation with the ADB and IEA.
Implementation methods are expected to include support by the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC), JBIC loans, ODA, NEXI insurance, the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry’s Global South subsidy program, and cooperation with the ADB, IEA, and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA).