Consulate-General of Japan to speak at UAFS event

Hiroshi Sato, who heads the Consulate-General of Japan in Nashville, is the guest speaker Nov. 20 in the Distinguished Global Speaker Series at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith.

Consul-General Sato will speak at noon in the Weidman Center, room 133 of the Pendergraft Health Sciences Center. His topic is "U.S.-Japan Relationships in the 21st Century." The session is free and open to the public.

The consular office in Nashville provides services to Japanese citizens living in Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee. In addition to assisting Japanese citizens, another mission of the consular office is to promote and assist with cultural exchanges and nurture business partnerships between the United States and Japan.

Sato, who assumed his current position in October 2008, entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1973. His overseas assignments include the Embassies of Japan in Washington, D.C., Malaysia, New Zealand and the Philippines.

He has also served as First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, Political Counselor of the Embassy of Japan in Egypt, Director of Ocean Affairs, Director for Protection of Japanese Nationals Overseas, and Deputy Consul General of Japan in New York and Hong Kong.

Although there is no fee, reservations are requested by contacting Takeo Suzuki, executive director of international programs, by phone at 479-788-7166 or by e-mail [email protected]