Japan pledged financial and technological assistance on Saturday to ASEAN countries in their efforts to decarbonize their economies and address climate change.
Energy-poor Japan aspires to establish its position as the world's top hydrogen economy to lessen reliance on old polluting fossil fuels like coal and oil.
Japan will host a ministerial meeting on climate, energy, and the environment in Sapporo on April 15-16, ahead of the G7 summit in Hiroshima on May 19-21, to promote what it calls a realistic energy transition.
"Japan will take a lead in providing generous support in finance, technology and personal resources to help Asia's decarbonisation," Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura told the first ministerial meeting of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC).
