Embassy of Japan in Canada

Ambassador Monji’s Official Visit to the Province of Quebec
October 27-29, 2015

Mr. Kenjiro Monji, Ambassador of Japan, and his spouse, Mrs. Etsuko Monji, paid an official visit to the province of Quebec from October 27 to 29, 2015. Quebec is 1.54 million square kilometers in area making it about four times bigger than Japan. As of 2014, the population has grown to 8.22 million people and there are approximately 5,600 Japanese-Canadians and 3,400 Japanese living in Quebec. Mr. Hideaki Kuramitsu, Consul-General of Japan at Montreal, also paid an official visit to Quebec with the Ambassador and attended meetings with government officials.

Quebec City Hall in the UNESCO World Heritage Site

“Historic District of Old Québec

Hotel Fairmont Le Château Frontenac

On October 28 in the capital, Quebec City, Ambassador Monji met with The Honourable Michel Doyon, Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, Mr. Philippe Couillard, Premier of Quebec, Mr. Jacques Chagnon, President of the National Assembly of Quebec, Ms. Christine St-Pierre, Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie and Mr. Pierre Arcand, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. The Ambassador also attended a luncheon hosted by Mr. Claude Pinault, Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief of Protocol, Ministry of International Relations and la Francophonie of Quebec. Topics discussed during the meetings include the political and economic situations in Japan, Canada and Quebec, and economic and cultural relations between Japan and Quebec. They exchanged views on how to further strengthen cooperation and friendship between Japan and Quebec. In addition, Ambassador Monji met with Mr. Pierre Karl Péladeau, Leader of the Parti Québécois, and Mr. Benoit Charette, Second Opposition Group critic for International Relations and La Francophonie.

Ambassador Monji and Lieutenant Governor Doyon

Consul General Kuramitsu and Lieutenant Governor Doyon

With Mr. Philippe Couillard, Premier of Quebec

With Mr. Jacques Chagnon, President of the National Assembly of Quebec

National Assembly of Quebec

Japanese flag on the National Assembly of Quebec

Inside of the Assembly

With officials of the Ministry of International Relations and la Francophonie of Quebec

With Mr. Pierre Arcand, Minister of Energy and
Natural Resources

With Ms. Christine St-Pierre, Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie

With Mr. Pierre Karl Péladeau, Leader of the Parti Québécois

On October 27, Ambassador visited Laval University, the oldest French university in the North America. Laval University offers Japanese language courses and its students participate in the Japanese Speech Contest held in Canada every year. Laval University also enjoys partnerships with six Japanese universities. On this day, Ambassador, Madam Monji, and Consul General Kuramitsu attended a ceremony held on the occasion of the reopening of “Espace Japon”, a facility in the University library used for Japanese cultural events. In his speech, Ambassador Monji thanked those who worked on the reopening for all their efforts. He also expressed his expectation that Espace Japon will contribute to further promotion of the education of the Japanese language and Japanese culture. After the ceremony, the Tankôkai Association of Montreal gave a tea ceremony demonstration. Ambassador Monji attended this demonstration and met with Dr. Denis Brière, Rector of Laval University, exchanging views on topics including cooperation between Laval University and Japanese universities.

Espace Japon

Tea ceremony demonstration

Ambassador’s speech at Espace Japon

With Dr. Denis Brière, Rector of Laval University

During his official visit to Quebec, Ambassador Monji met with many government officials and had fruitful exchanges of views on how to reinforce relationships between Japan and the Province of Quebec and other various themes. Since his arrival in April 2015, Ambassador Monji has visited the Province of Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec. In order to further strengthen the ties between the provinces of Canada and Japan, Ambassador Monji is planning to pay official visits to other provinces.