JapanIn video
May 15, 2026
Ambassador Jean-Eric Paquet of the EU Delegation to Japan sits down with Nippon.com to talk about his four years in Japan, including some Japanese characteristics he finds have rubbed off on him and the outdoor activities he enjoys here.
Journeying Throughout the Country
Jean-Eric Paquet has served for four years as ambassador of the EU Delegation to Japan. A keen hiker, he mentions some of the areas where he has enjoyed the Japanese outdoors. He also describes some of the ways that Japan has impacted his own personality and outlook on life during his duties here in Tokyo and all around the country.
Jean-Eric Paquet
EU ambassador to Japan at the EU Delegation to Japan, serving since September 2022. He held various mandates at the European Commission, where he contributed in shaping EU policy in various fields. From 2015 to 2018, he was deputy secretary-general of the European Commission, in charge of better regulation and policy coordination, covering all policy areas related to the EU Green Deal. As the director-general for research and innovation from 2018 and 2022, he set up the European Innovation Council and promoted a whole-of-government approach for R&I, notably via the creation of several EU missions to solve major ecological, societal and economical challenges.
(Originally written in English based on a March 23, 2026, interview at the European Union Delegation office in Tokyo. All images © Nippon.com.)