Traders at a forex brokerage firm in Tokyo, Japan work behind American, left and Japanese flags.
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The United States will unveil major changes to its military command structure in Japan and other measures to deepen defense ties with its Asian allies at high-level security talks in Tokyo on Sunday, a U.S. official said.
The overhaul comes as Tokyo hopes to establish a new joint headquarters to oversee its armed forces by March to better coordinate with Washington to counter what they see as growing regional threats from China and North Korea.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will hold talks with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Defense Minister Minoru Kihara later on Sunday. Austin and Kihara also met with their Korean counterpart Shin Won-sik earlier in the day.
“Secretary Austin plans to announce the United States’ intention to reorganize U.S. forces in Japan into a joint force headquarters reporting to the commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command,” the U.S. official said in a briefing before the talks.
The official said the command will be led by a three-star general instead of the previous four-star general. Japan demanded.
first, ministerial talks The agreement between the United States and Japan would also cover “extended deterrence,” a term used to describe the United States’ commitment to use its nuclear weapons to deter attacks on allies.
Japan provides a base for U.S. military power projection in Asia, with 54,000 U.S. troops, hundreds of U.S. aircraft and Washington’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier strike group.
Japan is retreating from decades of postwar pacifism, driven by China’s growing military might. In 2022, it unveiled a plan to double defense spending to 2% of gross domestic product.
Washington wants it too Explore Japanese industries Help ease pressure on U.S. defense companies from demands stemming from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Last month, Tokyo and Washington held talks on deepening defense industry cooperation at the U.S.-Japan Defense Industrial Cooperation, Procurement and Sustainment Forum established in April by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Joe Biden.
After Tokyo, Blinken and Austin will hold security talks with another ally, the Philippines, as the Biden administration seeks to counter an increasingly bold China.
blink Meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated in Laos on Saturday that Washington and its partners want to maintain a “free and open Indo-Pacific,” according to U.S. minutes of the meeting.
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