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TOKYO: Tokyo Governor KOIKE Yuriko will visit the Middle East for a week at the end of October, Tokyo Metropolitan Government has announced.

From October 25 to November 2, Governor Koike will visit Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Riyadh and Jeddah in ��������, Kuwait, and Giza in Egypt. She will attend international conferences, give lectures, and exchange opinions at the invitation of various governments and non-profit foundations. 

“Through this trip, she will aim to enhance Tokyo’s presence as a leading city in the international community and will also contribute knowledge gained from global inter-city collaboration to the administration of Tokyo,” the Metropolitan government said in a statement.

In Riyadh, Koike will attend the 9th Future Investment Initiative (FII9) – sometimes referred to as the “Davos Forum in the Desert” – at the invitation of the Future Investment Strategy Institute. She is planning to introduce Tokyo’s efforts to become an innovation and financial hub in Asia.

She will also work with TAKAHASHI Yoichi, a leading Tokyo manga artist and creator of “Captain Tsubasa,” to promote the appeal of Japan’s entertainment and creative fields, which are attracting global attention. 

She will also visit Jeddah, where she will exchange views with government officials in the region to explore the potential for inter-city collaboration, including economic and industrial development.

In Dubai, she will attend the 2025 Asia-Pacific City Summit and Mayors Forum (APCS2025) at the invitation of the UAE government. She will deliver a keynote speech at the conference, stressing the role of cities in global society and the importance of inter-city collaboration.

In Kuwait, at the invitation of the government, the delegation from Tokyo will tour the Kuwaiti capital region and hold discussions aimed at resolving common challenges in areas such as industry, startups, and women’s empowerment. 

This year marks the 35th anniversary of the friendship partnership between Tokyo and Cairo Governorate, and Koike will attend the opening ceremony of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza at the invitation of the Egyptian government. 

WASHINGTON: The release of the remaining Israeli hostages held by Hamas is imminent, US Vice President JD Vance said Sunday, while vowing that the Trump administration would apply all necessary pressure to ensure future stability in Gaza.
“It really should be any moment now,” the vice president told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” when asked about the timing for the release of the hostages by Hamas.
He added later on ABC’s “This Week“: “We expect to see them alive here in the next 24 hours, probably early tomorrow morning, US time, which will be later in the day, of course, in Israel.”
Asked on CBS’s “Face the Nation” whether Washington is committed to continuing to apply pressure to stabilize the Middle East, Vance said: “It is going to take consistent leverage and consistent pressure from the president of the United States on down.”
Speaking on a succession of Sunday morning talk shows, Vance also stressed that 200 American troops being deployed to Israel would be responsible for monitoring the ceasefire in Gaza and were never intended for any sort of combat role.
Vance added that US troops will not be deployed on the ground in Palestinian territory.
“That’s everything from ensuring that the Israeli troops are at the agreed-upon line, ensuring that Hamas is not attacking innocent Israelis, doing everything that they can to ensure the peace that we’ve created, actually sustains and endures,” Vance said on ABC.
“But the idea that we’re going to have troops on the ground in Gaza, in Israel, that that is not our intention, that is not our plan.”