(Provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only)
I would like to report on the outcomes and other details of today’s bilateral meetings. I will start in order. I held my first Japan-China Defense Ministerial Meeting with Minister of Defense Dong Jun. I candidly conveyed my serious concerns about the situation in the East China Sea, including Senkaku Islands, and the increasing military activities around Japan. In addition, we reaffirmed that the Hotline Between Japan and China Defense Authorities will be operated appropriately and reliably and shared the view to continue promoting Japan-China defense exchanges. I then held the Japan-France Defense Ministerial Meeting with Minister for the Armed Forces Lecornu of France, which was the first in three years. I congratulated the announcement of the commencement of the negotiation on Japan-France Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) during Prime Minister Kishida’s visit to France. We welcomed the concrete progress in bilateral cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, including joint exercises, and concurred to continue to deepen Japan-France defense cooperation and exchanges. At the Japan-Qatar Defense Ministerial Meeting that followed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs Al-Attiyah and I confirmed that we will further promote bilateral defense cooperation and exchanges in light of the upgraded relationship of the two countries to “Strategic Partnership,” which was agreed at the bilateral summit meeting in July of last year. Then, at the Japan-ROK Defense Ministerial Meeting, Minister of National Defense Shin and I reached a conclusion on issues between Japan-ROK defense authorities which have been discussed since last year. We confirmed that a statement of intent (SOI) on recurrence prevention measures was prepared between the Maritime Self-Defense Force(MSDF) and the ROK Navy, and concurred that we will ensure the implementation of the SOI to secure the safety of the MSDF and the ROK Navy in peacetime encounters. Additionally, we confirmed that we will work to promote Japan-ROK-U.S. security cooperation and strengthen mutual trust between Japanese and ROK defense authorities. We deem that the long-standing issue of preventing the recurrence of irradiation by a fire-control radar has been addressed. Building on today’s outcomes, we intend to increase Japan-ROK defense cooperation and exchanges. Lastly, at the Japan-Singapore Defense Ministerial Meeting, I expressed my appreciation for Singapore’s efforts as the host nation of the Shangri-La Dialogue. In addition to bilateral defense cooperation between Japan and Singapore, Minister of Defence Ng Eng Hen and I discussed enhancing defense cooperation between Japan and ASEAN as Singapore will be taking over the role of country coordinator for Japan from this summer to 2027.
Q: You delivered a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue today. Could you tell us again what you most intended to stress? Please also share with us any impressions you have about the atmosphere of the venue or any thoughts about how your speech went.
A: I had the privilege of delivering a speech. I emphasized that peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region are in the common interest of the international community. On this basis, I conveyed Japan’s determination to fundamentally reinforce our defense capabilities, improve situation awareness capabilities across the region, and work to strengthen cross-regional cooperation. For example, with regard to improving situation awareness capabilities, I discussed about our increasing information-sharing initiatives with our ally and like-minded countries, as well as about Japan’s support for improving the monitoring and surveillance capabilities of friendly countries through the Official Security Assistance (OSA) and the transfer of defense equipment and technology. As I was delivering my speech, I sensed a high level of interest in Japan’s efforts from the audience, and even after the speech, I heard that our officials received various comments from the floor regarding these points.
Q: I would like to ask about the Japan-ROK Defense Ministerial Meeting. Regarding the radar irradiation issue, it was revealed that the two sides reached some agreement on measures to prevent recurrences. However, the joint statement and other documents do not mention elucidating the facts. Is this the end of this issue and the facts will not be elucidated? This is my first question. In addition, some people in Japan are dissatisfied with this outcome. How do you intend to explain this agreement to those who are dissatisfied? This is my second question.
A: First of all, Japan takes the occurrence of this incident seriously and has strongly urged the ROK to prevent its recurrence. It occurred in December 2018, and we have long been firmly seeking to prevent the recurrence of this incident. To prevent the recurrence of incidents like this one that occurred between the MSDF and the ROK Navy in December 2018, which could lead to stagnation of security cooperation between Japan and the ROK and between Japan, the ROK, and the U.S., Japan and the ROK formulated a document. It mentioned compliance with the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES), improving communication on site, and enhancing communication at the central level. We deem that these measures will ensure the safety of our units and prevent the recurrence of fire-control radar irradiation incidents. Japan and the ROK just reached a conclusion on the issues between Japan-ROK defense authorities. We have not altered our claims regarding the facts that you referred to. How we explain this to the people is a matter of importance. This issue has been ongoing since 2018. If it is neglected between Japan and the ROK, another incident may very well take place. This issue concerns the lives of MSDF personnel, so we cannot let this happen again. There are differences in the positions of the two sides, and our respective claims have not changed. However, if an incident occurs again, the consequences will be irreversible. We consider that, because we were able to formulate recurrence prevention measures this time, the safety of the MSDF will be protected and guaranteed. At the same time, by reaching a conclusion on the issues between Japan and the ROK through the formulation of measures to prevent a recurrence, we anticipate that Japan-ROK defense exchanges like those we had before 2018 will resume. I expect that this will further improve regional security and deepen Japan-ROK and Japan-U.S.-ROK relations at a variety of levels, which will help solve the various security challenges facing this region. We will thoroughly explain this, alongside carefully explaining the outcomes of the meeting in order to obtain the understanding of the people.
(Abridged)