Tokyo is the largest LNG buyer in the world.

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will travel to Qatar and neighbouring Gulf states in July to discuss “stable supplies” of liquified natural gas (LNG), Japanese agency Jiji News reported on Tuesday.

Citing government sources, the report said the visit would include Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. 

“During the visit, Kishida is expected to discuss with leaders of the three Middle East nations ways to stabilise crude oil prices while seeking their cooperation in ensuring stable supplies of [LNG] to Japan,” the report said, citing the sources.

Speaking at a press conference on the same day, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi noted that Tokyo is looking to “advance” ties with the region in numerous fields.

“Japan is working on advancing relations (with Middle East countries) in not only the field of traditional energy, but also various other areas, such as clean energy,” Hayashi said.

Japanese media added that Kishida will discuss with officials in Saudi Arabia cooperation ahead of the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) summit, scheduled to take place in India in September.

Riyadh and Tokyo are both members of the G20.

Then in the UAE, the Japanese official will discuss “advancing security cooperation”. It comes after Abu Dhabi became the first in the Middle East to sign a defence equipment and technology transfer pact with Tokyo last month.

The pact established a legal framework between the two countries for “joint research, development and production of defence equipment and technology and for enhancing cooperation in the field of security and defence”.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, Japanese media outlet, Nikkei, reported that Japan and OPEC agreed to establish future dialogue. 

This came following a meeting between Kei Takagi, Japan’s parliamentary vice minister for foreign affairs, and OPEC Secretary-General Haitham Al-Ghais in Vienna.

“Dialogue between oil producing and oil consuming nations is mutually beneficial,” Takagi told Nikkei.

Notably, Japan is the largest LNG buyer in the world, importing 74,463,881 tonnes in 2020. Last year, Tokyo’s imports reached 71.99 million tonnes, overtaking China as one of the biggest importers of LNG.

Qatar is one of Japan’s biggest sources of LNG imports, alongside Australia and Malaysia. Japan’s LNG dependence on the Middle East is approximately 20%.