Turkmenportal visited the headquarters of Sumitomo Corporation in Tokyo, as well as the museum and production facility of Toyota in Aichi Prefecture, where it learned about the history of the companies' cooperation with Turkmenistan. The visit took place as part of a media invitation program organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan with the support of the Embassy of Japan in Turkmenistan.

The meeting with representatives of Sumitomo Corporation took place at the company's office in Tokyo's Otemachi Place East Tower. The Turkmen delegation met with key personnel from the corporation's automotive division: Ryusuke Miyake, General Manager of the Automotive Sales Strategic Development & Marketing Department; Yuki Ura, Assistant Manager; Yasuyuki Beck Katsube, Manager; as well as Ryo Hasegawa, Deputy General Manager of Sumitomo Corporation Power & Mobility.

As Turkmenportal reported during the meeting, the Japanese corporation Sumitomo has been successfully collaborating with the Ministry of Road Transport of Turkmenistan for several years in the field of automotive supplies, providing the passenger transportation and taxi fleet with modern cars and buses. The parties noted the positive dynamics of the partnership and intend to further strengthen their business ties. In addition, Sumitomo has been supplying high-quality pipes to the super-giant “Galkynysh” natural gas field for many years, further demonstrating the company's long-standing and diverse cooperation with Turkmenistan.

Sumitomo Corporation is one of the largest Japanese trading houses, founded in 1919. As of March 2026, the company's equity capital stands at 4.6 trillion yen. The company has been included in the Fortune Global 500 ranking for 31 consecutive years. Sumitomo operates through 123 offices in 62 countries around the world and comprises ten business groups, including the automotive sector, metallurgy (including pipe production for the energy sector), and digital technologies.

As part of the trip, Turkmenportal visited the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, the Toyota Kaikan Museum, and the production line at the Tsutsumi Plant, one of Toyota's automotive plants in Aichi Prefecture. The delegation also met with Takayuki Kanno, General Manager for the India & Middle East Region, and Toshiyuki Nakahara, Project Planning Manager, of Toyota Motor Corporation.

The Tsutsumi plant has been operating since December 1970, occupying an area of 1.14 million square meters with a workforce of around seven thousand employees. The facility produces the Prius, Prius PHEV, Corolla, Camry, Corolla Sports models, and the Crown lineup (Crossover, Sport, Estate), with a total capacity of up to 36,000 vehicles per month. As of February 2026, the plant's two production lines manufacture over 1,900 vehicles per day.

Over more than half a century of operation, the Tsutsumi Plant has served as one of Toyota's mother plants, supporting production and technology transfer to manufacturing operations in countries including the United Kingdom, Turkey, China, the United States, and Indonesia. The visit provided an opportunity not only to observe Toyota's manufacturing process, but also to gain a deeper understanding of the philosophy behind the company's approach to vehicle development and quality.

During the meeting, Mr. Kanno expressed his appreciation to customers in Turkmenistan for their long-standing trust in the Toyota brand. He emphasized that Toyota works closely with Sumitomo Corporation, which manages Toyota Distributor in Turkmenistan, to understand the market needs and deliver vehicles that meet customers' expectations.

Mr. Kanno also introduced Toyota's principle of Genchi Genbutsu (Go and See). Rather than relying solely on data or desk analysis, Toyota people visit the actual field, observe how vehicles are used in real conditions, and continuously improve future models based on what they learn. He explained that Toyota develops better products by combining engineers' expertise with feedback from customers, business partners and the field.

The guests were also introduced to the Toyota Production System (TPS), which reflects the same philosophy through continuous improvement (Kaizen), respect for people, and built-in quality throughout the manufacturing process.

There are two official Toyota dealerships in Turkmenistan: one in Ashgabat (“Garagum Ulag” and one in “Beyik Yupek Yoly”), and a quick-service center in Balkanabat. Toyota's global annual production capacity is approximately 10 million vehicles, and the brand has been present in the Turkmen market for over 15 years.