"CHORUS," a joint research program in the humanities and social sciences, has been initiated between JSPS, Ministère délégué à la recherche (French Ministry for Research), and Ministère des affaires étrangères (French Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Upon reaching a consensus on the content of the program, the representatives met in Paris on 9 December 2005 to execute the MoU. Amidst an amicable atmoshere, the document was signed by Prof. Elisabeth Giacobino, Ministère délégué à la recherche; Dr. Antoine Grassin, Ministère des affaires étrangères; and Prof. Motoyuki Ono, president, JSPS.

Implementation of this program is expected to significantly expand cooperation in the humanities and social sciences between Japanese and French researchers. From FY 2005, six or seven 3-year joint research projects are scheduled to be launched under this new framework. JSPS's call for proposals on the Japanese side was made in January 2005 via its e-application system.

Prof. Giacobino, Prof.Ono, Dr. Grassin