WASHINGTON – The United States and Japan on Friday launched a task force to promote human rights and international labour standards in supply chains, amid shared concerns about China’s treatment of Uighur Muslims, and said they would invite other governments to join the initiative.
The two sides also signed an updated memorandum of cooperation on cybersecurity to strengthen operational collaboration and hosted a roundtable with Japanese business representatives on upholding human rights and preventing use of forced labour in supply chains, a US statement said.
The signings came ahead of a visit to Washington next week by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for talks expected to focus on shared concerns about China’s growing might and other pressing international issues.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai signed a memorandum on the labour-standards initiative with Japan’s visiting Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura.
Mr Nishimura’s ministry said the task force envisaged information-sharing on reporting, best practices and enforcement practices, as well as dialogue with stakeholders, including businesses.
Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper this week cited Japanese officials as saying the move was spurred by issues such as alleged forced labour of minority Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region and that Japan would seek to promulgate regulations that Washington has strengthened to tackle such problems.
Ms Tai and Mr Nishimura said they would invite other governments to join the effort.
“The United States and Japan cannot do this alone,” Ms Tai said. “To make this work, we must partner with all relevant stakeholders – worker organisations, businesses, and civil society – to bring about lasting and meaningful change. We must also invite other governments to join us as we push ahead to safeguard the dignity of workers everywhere.”
USTR said Ms Tai and Mr Nishimura also discussed Japan’s priorities during its current presidency of the Group of Seven nations, Tokyo’s review of its biofuels policies, and Japan’s concerns about electric vehicle tax credits included in the US Inflation Reduction Act.
The cybersecurity memorandum was signed by Mr Nishimura and US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, who later jointly hosted a roundtable with Japanese business representatives on upholding human rights and preventing use of forced labour in supply chains, a DHS statement said.
Mr Nishimura on Thursday called for a “new world order” to counter authoritarian regimes that have been bolstered by post-Cold War free trade and economic inter-dependence.
A senior US official told Reuters last year that US allies appeared committed to following Washington’s lead in banning forced labour goods from Xinjiang.
The United States’ Uighur Forced Labour Prevention Act took effect last year to cut US imports of products from Xinjiang, where Washington accuses China of committing genocide against ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims, and herding them into camps. Beijing denies abuses in Xinjiang.
“We must address forced labour at each stage of our supply chains,” Ms Tai said. “Whether it’s the cotton in the clothes we wear or metals in the cars we drive, such abuses threaten to undermine the very foundations of our system.” REUTERS
