Japan's Abe hopes to bolster economic ties with Israel

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Sunday that his country hopes to bolster economic cooperation with Israel.

Abe made the remarks in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Japanese leader is on a six-day visit to the Middle East. He is leading a delegation of government officials and leading Japanese business people.

During their talks, Abe said the two countries have seen steady progress in bilateral ties since Netanyahu's visit to Japan last year.

It's the first trip for a Japanese prime minister to visit the Jewish state in nine years.

Two weeks ago, the Israeli cabinet approved a new plan to enhance economic ties with Japan, as part of ongoing attempts to boost Israeli exports to the Asian markets.

It is an investment of "tens of millions of shekels over a period of three years," according to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office.

The plan seeks to increase Israel's exports to Japan by 50 percent by 2020 to a total of approximately 1.1 billion U.S. dollars annually.

For his part, Netanyahu said Abe's visit has presented a "historic opportunity to bring together the great capabilities of the people of Japan and the people of Israel."

The Israeli leader also said that there are many economic, technological, as well as other sectors for the two countries to cooperate.

In recent years, Israeli exports to Japan have stagnated. In 2013, the export figure was some 720 million dollars. Currently, exports to Japan constitute just about 1.3 percent of overall Israeli exports.

Abe is scheduled to meet again with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin on Monday. He is to arrive to the West Bank territories on Tuesday, where he will meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

His arrival comes just a few days after the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague announced it would comply with the Palestinian Authority's request to initiate an inquiry into possible war crimes committed by Israel during Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip July and August where over 2,100 Palestinians and 70 Israelis died.

Israel strongly criticized ICC's decision, while Netanyahu is set to also ask Abe to cut funding to the court, as Japan is one of its biggest financers, according to a report by Israel's Ma'ariv daily.

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