I am Yoshio Karita, who was elected as successor at the Board of Directors meeting in September, as Mr. Tadateru Konoe, who served as Chairman for many years, has decided to step down.
I look forward to working with you all.
I am from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and after my training in the United Kingdom, my first overseas posting was to the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Geneva.
The years I spent in the beautiful cityscape of Geneva, spreading along the shores of Lake Léman with the towering Alps in the distance, are etched in my memory as something I will never forget for the rest of my life.
Now, nearly 60 years later, I feel a deep connection with Switzerland in unexpectedly being given a role related to Switzerland.
The spread of COVID-19 brought activities worldwide and the movement of people both domestically and internationally to a halt, and in Japan, all industries and cultural activities were affected.
Although it cannot be said that the COVID issue has been completely resolved even now, the world is gradually emerging from the crisis.
The Japan-Switzerland Society has also been forced to suspend its activities for nearly three years, but after careful deliberation at the Board of Directors meeting, it was decided to resume activities from October of this year.
With the arrival this autumn of Ambassador Andreas Baum from Switzerland, and under a new administrative structure led by Vice Chairman Thomas Döbeli and others, the Japan-Switzerland Society will make a fresh start.
I ask for the cooperation and support of each and every one of you so that this society, which has a long tradition since its establishment in 1955, can continue to progress on a path of growth and prosperity.
We, the new executive team, will do our utmost to ensure that all members genuinely enjoy the meetings of the Switzerland Society and that it becomes a place where relations between our two countries and friendships among members deepen.
I look forward to your support.
Yoshio Karita, Chairman of the Japan-Switzerland Society