Prime Minister Ishiba Visits Malaysia, Indonesia..."Relationship with Southeast Asia is important".

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba left Tokyo through Haneda Airport this morning for a visit to Malaysia and Indonesia.

Prime Minister Ishiba, who took office in October last year, has visited foreign countries to attend multilateral international conferences, but this is the first foreign visit for bilateral diplomatic purposes.

Speaking to reporters ahead of his departure, Ishiba said he wanted to make relations with Southeast Asia more important than ever in the face of growing international uncertainty.

It added that it will discuss regional security and economic cooperation with the leaders of Malaysia and Indonesia, and ask for a stable energy supply.