Japan, U.S. Defense Chiefs Agree to Boost Deterrence

Washington, Jan. 15 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday agreed to boost the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-U.S. alliance.

Their talks, held at the U.S. Defense Department in the suburbs of Washington, lasted for around 50 minutes. Asked by reporters whether responses to China were discussed, Koizumi said, "I can't comment on details."

Agreeing that expanding the Japan-U.S. presence in the Nansei southwestern region, including the southernmost Japan prefecture of Okinawa, is one of the alliance's top priorities, the two affirmed a plan to expand high-level joint exercises between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military. The move reflects China's increased activities in the East and South China seas.

Koizumi and Hegseth also discussed cooperation in the defense equipment and technology fields, agreeing to hold further talks on drastically boosting production of the Standard Missile-3 Block 2A interceptor, co-developed by the two nations.

China has piled military pressure on Japan since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks last November regarding a possible contingency over Taiwan. In addition, Chinese military aircraft used radar against Japanese Air SDF fighter jets last month, an incident that heightened tensions between the East Asian nations.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]