"Asian version of NATO." When we were in the military, Japan...Liberal Democrats Begin Discussion on Collective Security System

[Anchor]
Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party has begun discussions on the Asian country's collective security system, the "Asian version of NATO."

It seemed to have been quiet since Ishiba took office, but it seems to be rekindling discussions at party meetings.

Correspondent Kim Se-ho's report from Tokyo.

[Reporter]
Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba has consistently emphasized the need for an "Asian version of NATO" for more than 20 years.

It is argued that Asia also needs a collective security system to check China and others.

[Shigeru Ishiba / When he was a candidate for the Liberal Democratic Party (last September): This is an era when the United Nations is not functioning. Creating a collective security regime in today's Asia region is an urgent task.

Since taking office, however, he has remained cautious without making any relevant comments.

However, discussions have recently revived around the ruling party.

The Liberal Democratic Party held its first meeting of the Asian Security-related Special Committee and began discussions over the creation of the Asian version of NATO.

The special committee was established under the direction of Prime Minister Ishiba.

[Onodera Itsunori / Liberal Democratic Party Chairman: The Asian version of NATO or the revision of the U.S.-Japan Status Agreement is not a task that can be done overnight. First of all, it is important to continue the discussion properly.

It is interpreted as an intention to calmly build an atmosphere and environment for the Asian version of NATO.

In particular, it is expected to use military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, China's entry into the sea, and Japan's invasion of airspace.

The collective security system must respond by considering the country attacked if other countries involved are invaded.

To this end, the constitution should be revised, but there are still many negative voices in the party for practical reasons such as friction with neighboring countries.It is also unclear how much momentum related discussions could gain after U.S. President-elect Trump, who is also negative about multilateral cooperation, takes office next year.

I'm Kim Se-ho from YTN in Tokyo.