Competition: Commissioner Vestager agrees with Japan Fair Trade Commission to prepare upgrade of EU/Japan Cooperation Agreement

European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager and Japan Fair Trade Commission Chairman Kazuyuki Sugimoto have agreed to prepare the upgrading of the existing EU/Japan Cooperation Agreement on Anticompetitive Activities so as to allow for the exchange of evidence during investigations. The agreement was reached during the current visit of Commissioner Vestager to Japan for meetings with Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) Chairman Sugimoto and other political counterparts to discuss the role of competition policy to enhance competitiveness. Commissioner Vestager said: “For more than a decade now, the European Commission and the Japan Fair Trade Commission have benefitted from a strong relationship based on our existing Cooperation Agreement. Today, Chairman Kazuyuki Sugimoto and I have committed to take the cooperation to the next level by preparing the necessary steps to enable the two authorities to exchange evidence during common investigations.” Commissioner Vestager and JFTC Chairman Sugimoto also discussed the latest developments in competition policy and enforcement. Commissioner Vestager noted with interest the draft JFTC guidelines on Competition Policy and Public Support for Revitalization and shared the European Commission’s experience in dealing with rescue and restructuring aid. Her visit to Tokyo also includes meetings with Ms Tomomi Inada, Chairman of the Policy Research Council of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP); Mr Taro Kono, Minister of Administrative Reform; Mr Junji Suzuki, State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and Mr Yoshimasa Hayashi, MP (LDP).