[Title] JAPAN-TURKEY JOINT ACTION PLAN

At the threshold of the 21st century, Japan and the Republic of Turkey have decided to further strengthen and diversify their cooperative relations in the political, economic and cultural fields. They will periodically review such cooperative relations by holding political consultations between the two Foreign Ministries.

1. Cooperation in the Political Field

a. The two Governments will continue high-level exchanges of visits.

b. The two Governments will hold consultations to assess the situations in Asia, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the Middle East, the Balkan Peninsula, and other regions. They decided to newly establish a framework for Japan-Turkey regular consultations on the Middle East, Central Asia and the Caucasus at the Director-General level, as a part of such consultations.

c. Both countries will continue their cooperation to promote the Middle East peace process. In particular, they will make active and concrete contributions to the multilateral negotiations as active members of the Working Groups on Environment, Water, Regional Economic Development, Refugees, and Arms Control and Regional Security.

d. The two countries will seek closer cooperation in multilateral fora.

2. Cooperation in the Economic Field

a. Japan will continue to extend assistance to Turkey for its efforts to cope with the outcome of the earthquakes which struck Turkey twice last year. Japan will conduct jointly with the relevant Turkish authorities the study on the Basic Plan on Disaster Prevention and Mitigation in Istanbul, including seismic microzonation.

b. Japan will continue its support for Turkey's economic reform program.

c. Japan will continue technical cooperation with Turkey. Its pillars will be environment (amelioration of urban environment, measures against marine pollution), human resource development in economic and social fields, promotion of major industries aimed to adjust regional discrepancy in development level, promotion of South-South cooperation.

d. Both countries will promote Japan's grant assistance for grass-roots projects in Turkey.

e. Both countries will work on the early introduction of Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer (JOCV) programs in Turkey.

f. In order to increase the number of tourists, the two countries will strengthen the contacts between the two Governments, such as those between the Ministry of Tourism in Turkey and the Ministry of Transport in Japan. Both will take necessary measures to promote tourism.

g. Japan and Turkey will pay more attention to promote trade and investment between the two countries. They will promote further cooperation between the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and Turkish Export Promotion Center (IGEME). They welcome the 12th meeting of the Japan-Turkey Joint Economic Committee to be held this year.

3. Cooperation in the Cultural Field

a. Both countries will promote cultural exchanges, including those through the Turkish-Japanese Foundation Culture Center.

b. They continue to commend growing cultural interaction between their peoples and encourage the private sector in both countries to take increasing roles in events, such as exhibitions, seminars, and dialogue fora. In this context, the Japanese side welcomes the "Year 2003 of Turkey in Japan."

c. Japan and Turkey intend to continuously promote exchange in TV programs through a variety of channels, including the Japan Foundation and the Turkish Radio Television Corporation.

d. The two countries will continue to implement youth invitation programs and promote exchanges of students between the two countries.

e. They will promote cooperation in such fields as protection of cultural heritage through the framework of UNESCO.