Japan’s military will participate in training and exercises alongside Australian forces in Australia’s northern region.
Australia and Japan have agreed to share more intelligence and deepen military cooperation in what is being seen as a security pact aimed at countering China’s growing military presence in the Asia Pacific region.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida agreed on Saturday to strengthen security ties at the annual Australia-Japan Leaders’ Meeting in the city of Perth.
As part of the closer partnership, Albanese said Japan’s military would train and exercise in northern Australia alongside Australian Defence Force personnel, and the exchange of intelligence would be boosted between both countries.
In their fourth summit since Albanese took office in May, the two leaders said the agreement would serve “as a compass” for security cooperation for the next decade.
“This landmark declaration sends a strong signal to the region of our strategic alignment”, Albanese said, hailing the officially titled “Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation”.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio @kishida230 and I signed the declaration today in Perth, reflecting the strong and growing Special Strategic Partnership between our two countries.
Together we are accelerating efforts to realise a stable, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific. pic.twitter.com/ltLy4rApOQ
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) October 22, 2022
The Japanese leader said the two nations had been working to achieve a free and open Indo-Pacific under “an increasingly severe strategic environment”.
Kishida said he was resolved to examining all options required for national defence, including “counterstrike capabilities”, and he would ensure substantial increases to Japan’s defence budget to achieve his aims.
“I expressed my determination that all necessary options for the defence of our country, including the so-called counterstrike capability, would become contemplated and Japan’s defence capability will be fundamentally reinforced in the next five years, which is supported by Anthony,” he said.
“Through this experience, the bonds that tie Japan and Australia together have become much stronger. And our two countries have become the central pillar of cooperation among like-minded countries,” he said.
Canberra and Tokyo have been focused on increased security ties in response to China’s growing military strength in the…