China News Service, February 22 (Xinhua) According to Kyodo News, as the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) visited Kiev one after another to hold face-to-face talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida appeared behind in his visit to Ukraine.

A few days ago, US President Biden also made a lightning visit to Ukraine. Japanese officials sighed and said, "We were preempted."

Data map: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

　　"It has been invited by Ukraine and will be considered from various angles."

At noon on the 21st, when Kishida had lunch with Komeito party leader Natsuo Yamaguchi at his official residence, he was cautious about whether he would visit Kiev.

　　According to Japanese media, the trip to Kiev is a major topic since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis in February 2022.

　　"This is an effective means to show support for Ukraine," Kishida has been encouraging the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote this matter.

The situation in Ukraine will be the main topic at the Hiroshima summit, which he chairs.

　　People close to Kishida worry that if he is the only one among a group of leaders who has not visited Ukraine, then "the outside world may have doubts about Japan's sincerity."

　　Japanese media said that Kishida will visit Kiev before the G7 Hiroshima summit in May in order to show his presence.

On February 20, 2023 local time, US President Biden and Ukrainian President Zelensky met and talked in front of a church in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.

　　On the evening of the 20th, news broke out that Biden, who had never visited Ukraine like Japan, had secretly visited Kiev.

Officials from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs sighed, "We were preempted."

Among the G7 countries, Japan is the only one whose head of state has not visited Ukraine.

　　"There was actually an opportunity late last year," the diplomatic source said.

Kishida's schedule was empty after completing the revision and budgeting of the three security documents.

However, some of the media learned of the secretly promoted plan, and the idea of ​​the visit came to naught.

　　How to ensure safety is a difficult problem.

There is no provision in the Self-Defense Forces Act to send the Self-Defense Forces to provide security for dignitaries.

Although there was a plan to entrust NATO, which supports Ukraine, to provide guards, the source said, "This matter has not been moved forward."

　　In addition, there are constraints on the new aid measures proposed at the summit.

Zelensky asked countries to provide tanks and other weapons.

Japan is subject to the "Three Principles of Defense Equipment Transfer" in the arms export rules. Even under pressure from the US, Japan cannot provide lethal weapons.

　　"If you can only say 'no' or 'can't do' during the talks, it will be disappointing. It would be better not to go." A former cabinet member of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan has no hope for this.