July 29, 2024
Ministry of Defense
On July 29, 2024, Defense Minister Kihara and Defense Secretary Austin held a meeting from 13:15 for approximately 50 minutes at Japan Ministry of Defense. The summary is as follows.
1 Bilateral Defense Cooperation
Based on the Japan-U. S. “2+2” meeting, the Ministers confirmed to accelerate efforts on evolving roles and missions of the Alliance including effective operation of counterstrike capabilities under bilateral cooperation. With regards to upgrading respective command and control frameworks, they confirmed that they will continue to discuss bilateral coordination procedures and efforts to enhance collaboration. The Ministers once again concurred on the importance of steadily expanding bilateral presence of Japan and the U.S. in the southwestern region of Japan.
2 Realignment of U.S. Forces / U.S. Forces in Japan
The Ministers confirmed that they will continue to closely collaborate on the upgrade of U.S. tactical aircraft deployed to Japan.
The Ministers concurred that they will steadily advance the realignment of facilities and areas of the U. S. Forces Japan in order to maintain and strengthen deterrence and mitigate impact on the local communities. In addition, the Ministers confirmed to accelerate bilateral work toward the total return of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma (MCAS) as early as practicable, including the construction of the Futenma Replacement Facility at Henoko. Furthermore, they concurred on the importance of cooperation from the local communities for the stable stationing of the U.S. Forces in Japan and their daily activities, and confirmed continued coordination including supporting strong relationship with the local communities.