Press Conference by Minister Akazawa (Excerpt)

*Note: This is a provisional translation for reference purposes only.

2:48-3:14 p.m.
Tuesday, December 23, 2025
Press Conference Room, METI Main Building

Opening Remarks

Ministerial meeting on large-scale solar power generation projects

At the meeting of relevant ministers on large-scale solar power generation projects held today, a mega solar countermeasures package was decided. As part of its efforts to strengthen legal regulations against inappropriate cases, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will review the scope of environmental impact assessments and establish a verification system undertaken by a third-party organization to prevent accidents caused by design flaws in solar power generation facilities. In addition, as part of our efforts to prioritize support for regional coexistence measures, we will consider the possibility of abolishing support for ground-mounted commercial solar power generation from FY2027 and beyond in relation to the FIT and FIP schemes. In addition, we will focus on providing support for projects that aim to achieve regional coexistence, such as perovskite and roof installation. Going forward, we will work in cooperation with relevant ministries and agencies to swiftly and reliably implement the mega solar countermeasures package and continue to promote the introduction of renewable energy.

Call for GX Strategic Region

Yesterday, a meeting of the GX Implementation Council was held. GX is an initiative aimed at simultaneously achieving three goals: stable energy supply, economic growth, and decarbonization. The global situation regarding decarbonization is changing. For example, the European Commission recently announced a proposal to revise CO2 emission regulations, which effectively banned the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles from 2035 and beyond. I understand this represents a shift to a more realistic approach that aims to achieve carbon neutrality while avoiding the loss of industrial competitiveness. Taking such trends into consideration, Japan will pursue GX with unwavering commitment. As a concrete measure, we established the GX Strategic Region Program in August this year. By the end of October, we had received numerous proposals from local governments and businesses, and we have been working to flesh out the program. Today, we will begin accepting proposals. Going forward, a rigorous review will be conducted by a selection committee of external experts, and the GX Strategic Regions will be selected by around summer of next year. For regions selected as the GX Strategic Regions, we will take measures in alignment with the National Strategic Special Zones in an integrated manner through support, regulations, and institutional reforms, accelerate growth investment through GX, and create new industrial clusters that can compete and win on the global stage. Later today, we will hold a briefing session for all prefectures and municipalities. We look forward to active participation from local governments and others. Administrative staff will hold a briefing session to explain the details.

Committee for the Review of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, Outcomes

A forum will be established under the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Minister in charge of International Expositions to review the series of outcomes of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan and consider how to pass them on as a legacy. The first meeting of the Committee for the Review of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, Outcomes will be held on Thursday, December 25. On the day of the first meeting, experts and related parties will be participating, and Mr. Ochi Toshiyuki, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, is scheduled to attend from METI. This committee will discuss issues such as summarizing and verifying the outcomes of the Expo, considering how to pass on its philosophy and memories, implementing the outcomes in society, and determining how to utilize surplus funds. Please ask the administrative staff for specific details.

Question-and-Answer Session

Looking back on 2025 and aspirations for next year

Q: 2025 is coming to an end soon, but Minister Akazawa has had a very busy year under the Ishiba administration, focusing on Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations and the establishment of the Disaster Management Agency, and also joining the Takaichi Cabinet as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. What kind of year was 2025 for you? If you have to express this year in one kanji character, what would it be? Please also share your aspirations for next year.

A: Until I stepped down as Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization on October 21 of this year, under the Ishiba administration, I served as the first ever Minister in charge of Wage Increase under the current Constitution, and exerted maximum effort to raise wages, including the minimum wage. In addition, as Minister in charge of the Preparation of Establishing the Disaster Management Agency, I believe I have been able to pave the way for the establishment of the Disaster Management Agency in FY2026. Furthermore, this was truly a mission of the highest priority. Through the Japan–U.S. tariff negotiations ordered by Prime Minister Ishiba, I succeeded in reducing the more than 5 trillion yen in tariffs by over 2 trillion yen from what would otherwise have been imposed on Japan each year, thereby mitigating the impact on the Japanese economy and securing economic predictability and terms of trade that do not put Japan at a disadvantage vis-à-vis other countries. I am confident that these negotiations have produced tangible positive results. On the other hand, since tariffs still remain in place, I have made every effort to alleviate the burden they place on the Japanese economy and to take appropriate measures to address it. Subsequently, immediately after assuming the position of Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry on October 21, I visited Fukushima Prefecture and met with the governor and the heads of the affected municipalities. I conveyed to them my determination to make the reconstruction of Fukushima and the safe and steady decommissioning of Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station the highest priorities for METI, and to take responsibility for seeing these efforts through to the very end. At the same time, I received very encouraging comments from the heads of the municipalities, who told me that METI staff are doing excellent on‑site work and engaging closely with local communities. It made me feel that, as Minister and in my capacity as the person responsible for this portfolio, Fukushima was indeed the right place to visit first. Since November, in order to realize a strong economy and strengthen the earning power of Japanese companies, we have been deploying the FY2025 supplementary budget (totaling 2.7 trillion yen), focusing on responding to price hikes, including helping the public pay their electricity and gas bills during the severe winter, abolishing the provisional tax rate on gasoline at the end of this year, and increasing subsidies for diesel in phases, which will take effect on April 1 next year, as well as strengthening the Growth Power of leading medium enterprises (LMEs) or SMEs by taking price pass-through measures, ensuring fair transactions, productivity improvement, and restructuring through business succession and M&A. We have also been focusing on considering support measures such as promoting bold capital investment and R&D in strategic fields such as AI, semiconductors, quantum technology, and critical minerals, in order to realize a strong economy through crisis management investment and growth investment. Prime Minister Takaichi stated that we will build a strong economy through crisis management investment and growth investment. These initiatives are aligned with that policy direction, and ultimately, they are intended to achieve wage increases that outpace price hikes, supported by a range of investments. Until that goal is realized, we will continue to advance Japan’s economic development, including medium  to long term measures, while properly addressing the areas where people are experiencing hardship in their  daily lives and business activities. Looking back, I feel that this past year was, as Prime Minister Takaichi said with her fivefold call to “work,” a year in which I myself worked tirelessly to help realize a strong economy. In that sense, when asked to sum up the year in a single kanji, I must say that “働” (work) is hard overlook, given how hard I worked. But for me, the character that best captures the past year will be “米” (rice). I mean the kanji “米” from “米国” (the United States). The first reason is that as Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy and Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization, I have been paying close attention to wage increases that outpace price hikes, and moreover, as the first Minister in charge of Wage Increase under the current Constitution, I have been very concerned about prices hikes, especially the increase in rice prices, and have been keeping a close eye on them. In addition, Prime Minister Ishiba, I believe it was on April 8, instructed me to succeed in tariff negotiations with the United States, and of course “米” also appears in “米国,” the Japanese word for the United States. Moreover, I had hoped to return to my beloved hometown of Yonago in Tottori Prefecture, whose kanji is “米子”. People from Yonago even refer to going back home as “帰米.” But since I was unable to return as often as I wished, it became a year in which my feelings for Yonago grew even stronger. In that sense, “米” captures the year for me in at least three ways. And if I may add, semiconductors such as those produced by Rapidus, an area I oversee as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, are often called the rice of industry. So for me, while it may not reach the Prime Minister’s fivefold call to work, I can certainly say that “米” applies four times over. That is why I chose “米” as my kanji for the past year. Next year, I intend to build even more vigorously on the efforts we made this year, keeping in mind my motto, “Work together and change the world.” And as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, taking a cue from next year’s zodiac sign, the horse, and from the Prime Minister’s fivefold call to “work,” I hope to work like a true workhorse, dedicating myself wholeheartedly to my duties throughout the year.

Looking back on Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations and efforts in the future

Q: I would also like to ask about looking back on 2025. This overlaps somewhat with the previous question, but I believe that 2025 was a year in which free trade and the existing trade rules and order were greatly shaken by the imposition of high tariffs and other measures led by the Trump administration in the United States. In the midst of this, additional high tariffs were imposed on Japan, but you were at the forefront of negotiations and were successful in lowering them. Tariff measures will continue, but looking back, could you share your thoughts on the negotiations with the United States and the high tariff measures imposed by the United States? Additionally, a meeting of the Japan-U.S. consultation committee on investment in the United States was held on December 18. Could you tell us the status of considerations toward formulating win-win investment projects for both Japan and the United States, while managing risks and ensuring profitability? Could you also share your view about when you would like to make the first investment, Thank you.

A: Over the past 40 years, the United States had viewed Japan more as an economic competitor and a rival than an economic partner, as seen in the trade frictions over automobiles, semiconductors, and other sectors. In a sense, the United States, the central player in the global economy, had often acted to hold back Japan’s economic development. Let me repeat: for the past 40 years, the United States, as the central player in the global economy, had been restraining our country’s economic growth. However, through these recent tariff negotiations, I have gained a good understanding of the current U.S. position and the thinking of the Trump administration, and the United States has also gained a good understanding of Japan's position. As a result, I feel that the United States has come to strongly recognize Japan as a special partner with which we aim to ensure economic security and promote mutual benefits. In that sense, I personally believe that a new golden age for Japan-U.S. relations has begun. With the agreement on tariffs between Japan and the United States, Japan has been able to reduce tariffs by over 2 trillion yen, down from over 5 trillion yen per year that could have been imposed on Japan, mitigating the impact on the Japanese economy and ensuring economic predictability and terms of trade that do not put Japan at a disadvantage vis-à-vis other countries. Furthermore, through the Strategic Investment Initiative, we have agreed to build resilient supply chains within the United States that will benefit both Japan and the United States as special partners in areas that are important to economic security. Recently, during President Trump's visit to Japan, Prime Minister Takaichi and President Trump reaffirmed in writing that they would faithfully and swiftly implement the agreement between Japan and the United States, including the Japan-U.S. tariff agreement. Based on this, we will continue to work toward the faithful and swift implementation of the agreement with the United States. On the other hand, it is also true that a certain level of tariffs still remains in place, and the Government of Japan will respond appropriately to the various impacts, while continuing discussions with the United States regarding the series of tariff measures. Regarding the latter part of your question, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is working to strengthen the Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI)’s  financial base by investing 100 billion yen NEXI as a measure to implement loan guarantees related to the Strategic Investment Initiative, which is Japan's investment of 550 billion dollars in the United States, or what is said to be an 80 trillion yen investment. Furthermore, I have been briefed that at the consultation committee meeting held last week, opinions were exchanged on various projects that have the potential to be the subject of the investment initiative. However, I would like to refrain from commenting based on speculation about when and what specific projects might be formed.