JAPAN: New Ministers Kick 'Asian NATO' Idea Into Long Grass

New Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya has said that an 'Asian NATO' is "one idea for the future,". Speaking as a presser, Iwaya said "It's difficult to immediately set up a mechanism that would impose mutual defence obligations in Asia, so it's more of a vision for the future." Asked if such a framework would be targeting China, Iwaya said "The best way would be for a defence and security co-operation relationship that spans the Indo-Pacific without excluding any specific nation,"

• New Defence Minister Gen Nakatani said separately that PM Shigeru Ishiba has not asked him to pursue the 'Asian NATO' proposal. Nakatani also said that US nuclear deterrence 'should be maintained and strengthened to ensure its reliability'.
• Ahead of coming to office, Ishiba was viewed as something of a foreign policy maverick in the governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), having previously argued for an Asian NATO and for Japan to become 'more equal and independent' in its relations with the US. His stance vis-a-vis China is not viewed as combative, in contrast to other LDP leadership contenders, but potentially looking to engage with Beijing in an effort to avoid escalation.
• Earlier, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to Ishiba, saying he looked forward to building "strategic and mutually beneficial" bilateral ties between the "neighbours separated by a strip of water". Xi said the two should "follow the path of peaceful coexistence, friendship for all generations, mutually beneficial cooperation and common development".