The U.S.-Japan Business Council, Inc.

2101 L Street, NW, Suite 1000        Washington DC  20037       202.728.0068       

President
James W. Fatheree

Director of Meetings
and Administration
Sonna A. Russo

Councils Urge U.S. and Japanese Governments to Renew
Efforts to Increase Bilateral and Regional Economic
Integration and Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region



Jean-Luc Butel Named USJBC Chairman for 2009

The U.S.-Japan Business Council (USJBC) is pleased to announce that Jean-Luc Butel, Executive Vice President & Group President, International of Medtronic Inc., will serve as its new Chairman. Mr. Butel succeeds Jeffrey Kindler, Chairman and CEO of Pfizer, Inc. in this role.

Mr. Butel is a member of Medtronic’s Executive Committee and has primary operating and strategic responsibility for all international operations, including Japan. Prior to assuming his current position in March 2008, Mr. Butel headed Medtronic’s Asia-Pacific operations while based in Tokyo. USJBC President James Fatheree notes, “We are fortunate to have someone with Mr. Butel’s background at this time. His operating experience with Medtronic and involvement in U.S.-Japan policy issues through his work with the USJBC, the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan’s (ACCJ) medical devices committee, and other industry organizations provide a unique combination of experience in Japan that will serve USJBC member companies well.”

Alex Gorsky, Worldwide Chairman, Medical Devices & Diagnostics and Member of the Executive Committee of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies, was named Vice Chairman of the USJBC.  Prior to assuming his current position in January 2009, Mr. Gorsky was Company Group Chairman and Worldwide Franchise Chairman for ETHICON (including Japan) and a member of the Surgical Care Group Operating Committee at Johnson & Johnson.  Mr. Gorsky began his career with Johnson & Johnson in 1998 and has demonstrated success in both international and domestic roles in the company’s pharmaceuticals and medical devices businesses.

Charles D. Lake II, Chairman of Aflac Japan, was named to the USJBC board. Mr. Lake has led the USJBC’s work on U.S.-Japan economic integration in recent years and has deep knowledge of the Japanese economy and bilateral economic relations from his experience at Aflac, in private legal practice, and as former director of Japan affairs for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in the early 1990s. Mr. Lake is vice chairman of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation, a director on the board of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) and president emeritus of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan.