January 17, 2019
On January 17, commencing around 5:05 p.m. for approximately 20 minutes, Prime Minister Abe Shinzo received a courtesy call from Admiral John M. Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations, during his visit to Japan. Attendees to the meeting include, from the U.S. side, Mr. Joseph Young, Charge d’Affaires ad interim, U.S. Embassy in Japan, and others and from the Japan side, Mr. Nishimura Yasutoshi, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Mr. Nogami Kotaro, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Mr. Izumi Hiroto, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister, and others. The overview of the meeting is as follows.
1. At the beginning, Prime Minister Abe welcomed Adm. Richardson’s visit to Japan and stated that cooperation between the MSDF and the U.S. Navy is a pillar of the Japan-U.S. alliance and that he would like to enhance cooperation in order to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance and realize a free and open maritime order based on the recently formulated National Defense Program Guidelines.
2. In response, Adm. Richardson said that there is no better cooperative relationship than that between the U.S. Navy and the MSDF, and that under Acting Secretary of Defense Shanahan, the U.S. Navy would continue to emphasize relations with allies and partners based on the National Defense Strategy, while further promoting cooperation for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific.
3. They exchanged views on a wide range of topics regarding Japan-U.S. defense and security cooperation and the regional situation, including the situation in North Korea, and agreed to continue to closely cooperate on these issues.
