Global Trade - Global Speakers Bureau

Yukio Hatoyama was Prime Minister of Japan 2009-10.

Yukio Hatoyama was the first ever Prime Minister from the modern Democratic Party of Japan. In moving towards a more Asia-centered foreign policy, Hatoyama worked towards making relations better with nearby East Asian countries. He also worked to deepen economic integration within the East Asian region, pushing for a free trade zone by 2020 and proposing Haneda airport as a 24-hour hub for international flights.

Relations with China also warmed under Hatoyama. The first few months saw an exchange of visits, including one by Xi Jinping, for whom Hatoyama arranged an appointment with Emperor Akihito. The Daily Yomiuri reported high-level discussion over a further exchange of visits between the two countries to promote reconciliation over historical issues. “Beijing aims to ease anti-Japan sentiment among the Chinese public by having Hatoyama visit Nanjing and express a sense of regret about the Sino-Japanese War”, the paper reported

Yukio Hatoyama promised a big cut in greenhouse gas emissions, saying he would aim for a 25% reduction by 2020 compared with 1990 levels. The targets were more ambitious than those of any other industrialised nations. His talk was welcomed at the UN and showed his leadership role in climate change. Although he was Prime Minister for less than a year, he had a wide range of achievements to his name by the time that he left office.

A consummate statesman who led France through many of the greatest threats and challenges of the 21^stcentury, François Hollande brings insights gained from a lifetime spent at the highest levels of public service to the most pressing issues of our time. From terrorism to climate change, to the global economy and beyond, he has faced them all with a measured calm cultivated by years of experience.

The presidency of François Hollande was marked by the action he took against the twin scourges of international terrorism and climate change. By deploying French troops to Mali in early 2013, Hollande stemmed the tide of violence caused by terrorist groups. It was also under his presidency and leadership that the Paris Agreement of 2015 was signed by an overwhelming majority of the global community.

A true patriot, President Hollande took historic steps to promote equality in France, lowering the unemployment rate, creating a "millionaire's tax," and legalizing same-sex marriage. He has made it his life's work to stand up for those who could not do so for themselves. President Hollande once famously said that "Each country has a soul, and France's soul is equality." In his five years at the helm of the French Republic, President Hollande led by example.