Washington – Japan, the United States and South Korea are considering holding a trilateral summit by the end of this year, Mira Rapp-Hooper, senior director for East Asia and Oceania at the U.S. National Security Council, said Thursday. The three countries will continue efforts to build partnership and “put it on strategic footing for the … Read more
The Defense Ministry said Friday that the Self-Defense Forces will participate in the U.S. military’s Valiant Shield large-scale exercise for the first time. SDF bases will be used also for the first time in the biennial drill in the Pacific region. The SDF’s participation is believed to be aimed at enhancing U.S. and Japanese preparedness … Read more
The U.S. military’s Yokota Air Base in a western suburb of Tokyo was opened to the public in a two-day event through Sunday, with an Air Force CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor transport aircraft among exhibits. Visitors to the Japan-American Friendship Festival formed a long line to see the aircraft. In November last year, a U.S. Air … Read more
Senior diplomats from Japan, the United States and the Philippines on Thursday pledged to further promote their cooperation, the Foreign Ministry said, paving the way for their first-ever trilateral summit next month. The senior officials also said that any attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force cannot be tolerated, according to the ministry, … Read more
JIJI, REUTERS – U.S. President Joe Biden’s opposition to Nippon Steel’s proposed acquisition of United States Steel does not hurt Tokyo and Washington’s relationship, U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday. Kirby’s comments at a press briefing came after Biden said in a statement Thursday that it is “vital for it to remain … Read more
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said Friday that the United States has made an official request to coordinate timings for resuming operations of the Osprey aircraft in Japan, after they were grounded following a deadly crash involving one of them last year. The Pentagon is gearing up to lift the Osprey’s global flight suspension following the … Read more
Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force said Saturday that it conducted joint training with two U.S. Air Force B-52 heavy bombers over the Sea of Japan and East China Sea a day earlier, in what was seen as a show of force to both Beijing and Pyongyang. The ASDF said that four each of its F-15 and … Read more
Naha – Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi on Sunday expressed eagerness to hold a task force meeting with Okinawa on the transfer of a key U.S. military base within the prefecture, amid local objections to the plan. But during his talks with Hayashi in Naha, Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki urged Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government … Read more
The United States has promised to consult with Japan before it resumes Osprey flights after suspending them following a deadly crash of one of the tilt-rotor aircraft late last year, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said Tuesday. Kihara stated at a news conference that he understands U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has instructed the U.S. … Read more
Japan and the U.S. are arranging a summit between Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Joe Biden for April 10, close sources said Thursday. Kishida was planning to visit the U.S. as a state guest in early March, but the date was pushed back due to Biden’s State of the Union address to Congress being … Read more