(Provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only)
I have an announcement about the Japan-U.S. Defense Ministerial Meeting. Today, commencing at 1:15 p.m., I held a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin for approximately 50 minutes. At the meeting, we held a detailed discussion about various initiatives based on the discussions that took place at the Japan-U.S. “2+2” meeting yesterday. Upgrading the respective command and control frameworks of Japan and the U.S. is an important issue for advancing the modernization of the Alliance. With regard to the U.S. side’s efforts on the realignment of the U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) announced during the Japan-U.S. “2+2,” we received explanations on the progress of considerations within the U.S. We concurred to establish working groups in the two countries and to deepen discussions on bilateral coordination and enhancing collaboration going forward. In addition, Secretary of Defense Austin expressed his strong support for Japan’s early acquisition of stand-off defense capabilities, which Japan is advancing, and we agreed to continue discussing the matter, including the effective operation of counterstrike capabilities under Japan-U.S. cooperation. Lastly, we discussed the details of various matters, such as the updating of USFJ tactical aircraft and the steady implementation of USFJ realignment, and we confirmed the future direction of such matters. Building on the outcomes of the Japan-U.S. “2+2” and today’s meeting, I will continue to accelerate Japan-U.S. defense cooperation efforts with Secretary of Defense Austin for further strengthening the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-U.S. Alliance and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.