Japan to Keep Assisting U.N. Body for Palestinian Refugees

Bangkok, June 27 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono emphasized on Wednesday that the country will continue supporting a U.N. body working for Palestinian refugees. The activities of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) "contribute to preventing violent extremism," he said at a ministerial meeting of the Conference on Cooperation among East Asian Countries for Palestinian Development, or CEAPAD, in Bangkok. Referring to growing extremism in East Asia, Kono stressed that it is "highly important" for UNRWA to maintain its activities "from the perspective of preventing terrorism." The U.N. body's ongoing financial crisis needs to be tackled by the international community as a whole, he added. The administration of the U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a decision to freeze part of the country's financial contributions to UNRWA. Under the circumstances, the organization has faced a lack of funds, and there have been concerns as a result that its food aid and educational support for Palestinian refugees could be affected. END