News archive 2007

We are very pleased to announce the successful selection of the specific support action entitled COJAK, a proposal submitted at Call1 under the European Union's 7th Framework Programme (FP7).
The COJAK project which will be a follow-up of, and organised in full continuity with the ASIACOOP initiative, aims at contributing to the development of dialogue between stakeholders and of cooperation projects between the EU and Japan. The official project start date is January 1, 2008.
The organisation of a “EU-Japan Cooperation Summit on ICT” in Europe in October or November 2008, represents just one out of a set of activities planned to be carried out within this project.
More detailed information on the planned activities within the COJAK project will be regularly provided on this website. So, stay tuned with www.EuroJapan-ICT.org!

The concept of the “2008 EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on ICT Research”, to be organised at the Mita Kaigisho Conference Hall in Tokyo has been set in detail on the occasion of meetings held last week in Tokyo between the European Commission and Japanese authorities.
This event will be held over two days at the end of February, beginning of March (date to be announced soon), following the official EU-Japan Information Society Dialogue meeting.
Mr Fabio Colasanti, Director General of DG Information Society and Media of the European Commission, has accepted to take part in the opening session of the Forum.
The precise organisation of this Forum can now develop and information on various aspects of the event (overall structure, draft programme, admission criteria, registration, etc.) has already been posted on this web site (see the Upcoming event section).

"Europe" magazine is the official publication of the Delegation of the European Commission to Japan and is published by its Press, Public and Cultural Affairs Section. The principal purpose of "europe" is to give information on all aspects of the European Union to those interested in the European Union and EU-Japan relations. The magazine is published quarterly and is circulated widely among political, academic, media and business circles. The print run of "europe" extends to 15,000 copies. The magazine is only available in Japanese.
"Europe" covers a wide range of topics and includes regular articles on major events in Europe along with topics related to EU-Japan relations. The magazine also highlights subjects such as enlargement of the European Union and the EU's role as a world partner, as well as interviews, book introductions and articles on European culture.
To subscribe to "europe", please fill in an application form, downloadable in PDF format and fax or mail it to the address below. Further information on subscriptions may be obtained by calling 03-3239-0441.
Press, Public and Cultural Affairs Delegation of the European Commission to Japan Europa House 9-15 Sanbancho Chiyoda-ku Tokyo 102-0075.

The “EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on Research and Innovation”, successfully organised by the European Commission and Japanese Authorities on July 11, 2007 in Tokyo, to increase awareness and deepen knowledge of the 7 th EU Research Framework Programme (FP7) in Japan, attracted a number of European and Japanese high officials and keynote speaker, amongst them, Mr. Silva Rodriguez, Director General of DG Research, European Commission.
In his opening speech, Mr. Rodriguez outlined the indispensable necessity of a closer and deeper collaboration between the EU and Japan as far as international cooperation through an enhanced S&T collaboration is concerned, as a solo attempt of one of the countries wouldn't be sufficient to cope with today's global challenges. Above all with regard to the fact that the EU and Japan are facing similar problems such as an ageing population, energy insecurity and inefficiency or global warming, etc. Apart from this, with only 21 projects submitted in the framework of the FP6 with the participation of Japanese organisations and only 22 fellowships for Japanese researchers to come to Europe, Mr. Rodriguez demonstrated again in a significant way the need to strengthen EU-Japan S&T cooperation.
Consequently, “knowledge must flow through Europe's internal borders as freely as goods and people”, so the Director General of DG Research. The EU's Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP) represented and still represents, after more than 20 years of existence, the major tool in order to achieve this striving goal. In this context, he emphasized that this year's launched Seventh Framework Programme is the largest trans-national publicly funded research programme in the world with approx. 54 billion euros at funding disposal.
Furthermore, he underlined that “for Europe, international Science & Technology cooperation is based on the principles of mutual interest and mutual benefit for all parties involved”. Life Science, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Nanotechnology and Energy/Climate Change, are such key areas of mutual interest for instance, also identified and covered by the “research and innovation” document annexed to the “Joint Press Statement” of the 16 th EU-Japan Summit carried out in Berlin, Germany, on May 5, 2007.
Mr. Rodriguez concluded that “the EU and Japan need to work together more effectively and more intensively than in the past, and build a strategy for global prosperity based on knowledge cooperation. By working together, Japan and the EU stand the best chance of becoming the vibrant knowledge economies of wealth creation”. Only that way will Europe and Japan realise their mutual ambition of a peaceful, environmentally sustainable and prosperous world.
Hence, the “EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on Research and Innovation” fully contributed to a better understanding among the Japanese research community about EU's priorities on Research and Innovation and the Seventh Research Framework Programme in general.
For more detailed information on this event, please visit the homepage of the European Delegation to Japan.

EU Delegation to Japan

A new network is being developed for European researchers in Japan. It will provide web-based and other services for researchers who want to improve their contacts with other European researchers in Japan and Europe. This project is supported by the European Commission (Directorate General for Research and the Delegation of the European Commission to Japan) in collaboration with the Embassies of the EU Member States in Japan and the other European countries associated with the European Research Area.
The online survey of European Researchers in Japan was officially launched at the occasion of the EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on Research and Innovation on July 11in Tokyo. The survey will remain online until the end of September.
The survey has been launched to identify ways of developing the network and the types of information and services that would be useful to European researchers. The results of this survey will be used to develop the network to be launched under the name ERA-Link/Japan later this year.
The EU Delegation to Japan would be very grateful if you could take the time to fill out this survey. It should take approximately 10 minutes to complete. You can access it by clicking on the following link:
ERA-Link/Japan Online Survey

* European Researchers, including:
(i) Europeans who may not be doing research stricto sensu but have connections with science, technology or innovation activities in both public or private sector, e.g. European engineers, students, investors, entrepreneurs, patent attorneys, etc. and,
(ii) European or Japanese organisations hosting European researchers in Japan.

EU Delegation to Japan

The www.EuroJapan-ICT.org web portal, devoted to S&T cooperation between the European Union and Japan in the ICT area, has been officially put online today. Developed in the framework of the ASIACOOP initiative (a support action funded by the European Commission under the FP6 research programme), it will be maintained in close liaison with the International relations Unit of European Commission's DG Infso. The platform will provide full details on the “Euro-Japan cooperation Forum on ICT research” to be organised in Tokyo in February 2008 under the aegis of the European Commission and of the Japanese authorities. It will more generally provide information and services addressing and supporting cooperation on ICT research between the EU and Japan.

The Commission launches today a public consultation to help strengthen the global position of Europe's Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industries by ensuring access to global markets. The consultation will run until September 17, 2007 and is open to all stakeholders, including industries, research community and consumer organisations. The Commission seeks to capture stakeholder views on market access and on regulatory issues so as to refine its EU strategy for international cooperation on ICT.
“Our ICT industry in Europe needs to think and be global", said the EU's Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding. "While we have been working hard to create a single telecoms market in Europe, we must not lose sight of the global picture. There are further markets to take abroad for Europe's ICT industry if we strengthen its competitiveness and remove barriers to trade in third countries. Today's consultation therefore seeks to identify trade barriers and business opportunities that exist worldwide for Europe's ICT industry".
Internationally, the stakes are high for Europe's ICT industry: the EU represents approximately 30% of the world ICT market. Electronic communications, embedded computing, micro- and nano-electronics, micro-systems and ‘smart' integrated systems are Europe's main industrial and technological strengths. Europe also has 6 of the world's top 10 telecommunications providers and 4 of the top 10 equipment manufacturers.
To help Europe's ICT industries sell their products and services globally, and increase market share, the Commission believes in open markets and free trade. The Commission in particular is working for further progress in multilateral trade relations under the World Trade Organisation, especially regarding trade in services, which is essential for Europe's ICT sector.
With the public consultation launched today, the Commission aims to formulate a more ambitious, targeted international EU strategy for ICT that explores new markets for EU industries, improves the competitiveness of Europe's ICT industry in global markets and promotes EU interests worldwide.
To request input for this international strategy (which will be published in the first half of 2008), today's consultation asks interested stakeholders for input in three areas:
- Regulatory, market access, trade issues, looking at regulatory cooperation, standards, intellectual property rights, access to spectrum and smart radio tags (RFID);
- Research and innovation, focusing on ICT research collaboration, research infrastructure and the role of ICT in global challenges such as energy efficiency, ageing, healthcare etc.;
- Social aspects, such as network and information security, internet governance, the digital divide between poor and rich countries, and improving existing bilateral agreements with non-EU countries.

Today's public consultation is part of the overall i2010 initiative to create an information society for growth and jobs (see IP/05/643).
The public consultation full document is available here.
For more on the EU's Information Society's international dimension: MEMO/06/461.

The EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on research and Innovation, will be held on July 11, 2007 from 10:00 to 15:30 at the Mita Kaigisho, 2-1-8, Mita, Minatu-ku, Tokyo, Japan. The Forum is organised by the European Commission and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the support of the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
The objective of the Forum is to increase awareness and deepen knowledge of the 7th EU Research Framework Programme, 2007-2013 (FP7) in Japan with a view to seeking specific cooperation areas of mutual interest between the European Union and Japan regarding science and technology fields.
The targeted attendance is, from the Japanese side, Japanese researchers and research coordinators/facilitators from universities, organisations and companies, as well as officials of Japanese ministries /agencies, and, from the European side, European researchers in Japan and officials from embassies of European countries in Japan.
The venue of the Forum is Mita Kaigisho (Japanese Government conference building). See map.
Registration is free of charge but is compulsory by sending by email by July 6 your name and contact details by using the attached form in both Japanese and English to the Delegation of the European Commission to Japan at: Delegation-Japan-st@ec.europa.eu
Interpretation: English/Japanese interpretation provided (simultaneous in the morning plenary session / consecutive in the afternoon parallel thematic sessions)
FP7 Information brochures on FP7, DVD films (in Japanese and English versions) on 5 ongoing EU research projects in FP6, specific information on thematic S&T areas of FP7 and international cooperation, online survey of European researchers in Japan, etc. will be available in the hall beside the conference room during the Forum (10:00 – 15:30)
A buffet lunch (12:30 -14:00) is available (free of charge) to provide opportunities for the participants in the Forum to meet and network.
Contact persons:
- Delegation of the European Commission to Japan, Dr. Philippe de Taxis du Poët, (Philippe.de-Taxis-du-Poet@ec.europa.eu), Mr. Akira Kimura(Akira.Kimura@ec.europa.eu), Phone: 03-3239-0794, Fax: 03-3261-5194 (more information here).

- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Economic Integration Division, Mr. Tomonobu Sato / Mr. Minoru Okazaki, Phone: 03-5501-8331, Fax: 03-5501-8330.

Programme:

Please find the programme of the "EU-Japan Cooperation Forum on Research and Innovation" here.
You can also download the Japanese version of the Programme here.

Yesterday and today, several bilateral meetings have taken place in Tokyo in order to discuss the various aspects of the preparation of the “Euro-Japan Cooperation Forum on ICT Research” to be organised in Tokyo in February 2008. The meetings involved, on the European side, representatives of the Delegation of the European Commission to Japan, of DG Information Society and Media and of the ASIACOOP initiative (a project funded under the FP6 research programme and supporting the organisation of this Forum). Fruitful discussions have developed with the representatives of Japanese Ministries (MIC, METI, MEXT). It is expected that common views on all event aspects can be reached in the short term, which will allow starting the promotion of the event inside the European and Japanese ICT communities. For further information, please contact us.