Japan, S. Korea Defense Chiefs Agree on Mutual Visits

Yokosuka, Kanagawa Pref., Jan. 30 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and his South Korean counterpart, Ahn Gyu-back, agreed to conduct mutual visits every year, at a meeting on Friday at the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's Yokosuka base in Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo.

The two ministers also agreed to promote exchanges between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the South Korean military and to cooperate on cutting-edge technologies, such as artificial intelligence.

"Next time, I will visit South Korea to enhance communication between the two countries' defense authorities," Koizumi told reporters after the meeting.

Koizumi and Ahn agreed to resume joint search-and-rescue drills between the MSDF and the South Korean navy, which have been suspended since a 2018 incident in which a South Korean military vessel directed its radar at an MSDF plane.

They also vowed to promote three-way cooperation, including the United states, in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile development.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]