Discussions Cont On Japan Defence Pivot Ahead Of Biden/Kishida Meeting

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet with his Japanese counterpart Yasukazu Hamada at the Pentagon today as discussions continue on Japan's major defence pivot ahead of a meeting between President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House tomorrow.

• Japan’s transformational defence policy change which will see Tokyo significantly increase defence spending and become a key global player in defence for the first time since the Second World War.
• Yesterday's "2+2" ministerial focused on how the US and Japan can manage the risk posed by China. Blinken: “We agree that the PRC is the greatest shared strategic challenge that we and our allies and partners face.”
• Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi: “China presents an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge."
• Austin: “Japan and the United States remain united in our concern over China’s destabilizing actions, and I want to reaffirm the United States’ ironclad commitment to defend Japan with the full range of capabilities.”
• The Minsters recognised in a joint statement, “Japan reiterated its resolve, under its new strategies, to fundamentally reinforce its defence capabilities, including counterstrike, through a substantial increase of its defence budget.”