U.S.-Japan Defense Secretary "It is important to further strengthen the deterrence of the U.S.-Japan alliance"

Japanese Defense Minister Ken Nakatani had his first call with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and agreed to work closely to further strengthen the U.S.-Japan alliance.

The defense ministers of the two countries agreed that it is important to further strengthen the deterrence and coping ability of the U.S.-Japan alliance, keeping in mind that China and others are attempting to unilaterally change the status quo by force in the Indo-Pacific region.

It was then decided to improve the command and control of the U.S. military and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces.

They also agreed to speed up the reorganization of the base, starting with the return of the U.S. Futenma base in Japan, to reduce the burden on Okinawa, where U.S. troops are stationed in Japan.

However, it is reported that Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who took office on the 1st, did not discuss the creation of an "Asian version of NATO" and the revision of the U.S.-Japan Status Agreement, a pledge made in the election for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party president last month.