<h6><strong>The Diplomat</strong></h6> <h4><strong>On June 24th, the Spain-Japan Council Foundation (SJCF) held its first General Board Meeting of 2025, where it presented the 25th Spain-Japan Forum, which will take place in Barcelona from October 22nd to 24th.</strong></h4> During the meeting, the annual accounts for 2024 were unanimously approved, and the main lines of activity carried out by the Foundation in the first half of the year were reviewed, as well as the evolution of relations between Spain and Japan, which "are going through a particularly positive period," according to the SJCF. One of the highlights of the agenda was the official welcome of the Tenerife Island Council as a new member of the Board of Trustees. In his speech, the island's Director of Foreign Affairs and Institutional Relations, Pedro González, emphasized the importance of strengthening ties with Japan and recalled several milestones in that relationship, such as collaborations in the audiovisual and video game sectors, where Tenerife has established itself as a strategic platform for international cooperation. Separately, the Spanish Ambassador to Japan, Íñigo de Palacio; the Minister of the Japanese Embassy in Spain, Shinji Minami; and the Director General for North America, Eastern Europe, Asia and the Pacific of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Luis Fonseca, addressed the current state of bilateral relations and highlighted the recovery of Japanese tourism to pre-pandemic levels and the intensification of cooperation in key areas such as defense and security. The meeting also served as a tribute to Fidel Sendagorta, Spain's ambassador to Japan from 2022 to 2025. Regarding the programming of activities, the meeting presented the calendar for the second half of the year, with special attention to the 25th edition of the Spain-Japan Forum, which will be held in Barcelona from October 22 to 24 and will commemorate the 25th anniversary of this space for strategic dialogue between the two countries. The Forum, the main platform for dialogue between representatives of civil society and the Spanish and Japanese administrations, is jointly organized by the Spain-Japan Council Foundation and the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of both countries. It has been held annually since 1997, alternating between Japan and Spain, around an agenda of strategic issues for bilateral relations. The meeting also highlighted the recent celebration, in early June, of the third edition of the Japanese Leaders Program, which this year focused on "cities of the future" and included visits to projects and institutions in Madrid and Valencia.
