(Press Release: Provisional Translation)
October 19, 2024
Ministry of Defense Japan
On October 18, commencing at 18:30 (local time) for approximately 45 minutes, Minister Nakatani held a Defense Ministerial Meeting at Naples with The Hon. Guido Crosetto, Minister of Defence, Italian Republic.
- At the beginning of the meeting, Minister Crosetto congratulated Minister Nakatani on his new appointment as Minister of Defense of Japan and Minister Nakatani stated that he was delighted to meet Minister Crosetto in person soon after his appointment as the Minister of Defense of Japan.
- Minister Nakatani paid tribute to the Italian leadership as the Presidency of the G7 in the current severe international situation and congratulated Minister Crosetto on his initiative to hold the first G7 Defense Ministerial meeting in Naples.
- The Ministers welcomed that the two countries recently agreed in principle on the Japan-Italy Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) and they were pleased that Japan-Italy defense cooperation and exchanges have been deepened in recent years including the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), port calls of vessels and aircrafts, steady implementation of joint exercises, and the first time engagement of monitoring and surveillance activities by Italy against illicit maritime activities including ship-to-ship transfer.
- In addition, the two Ministers touched upon regional affairs, and Minister Nakatani concurred on further strengthening cooperation against unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.
- The Ministers concurred on continuing to work closely together towards further deepening Japan-Italy defense cooperation and exchanges and the realization of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)”.