During a visit to strengthen Tokyo's alliance with the US in the face of mounting challenges from Beijing, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated in Washington, DC, that Japan, the US, and Europe must act in unison against China.
As China's vision for the world order varies from that of Tokyo and Washington in some aspects that the allies "will never accept," Kishida said, China is the main challenge for both Japan and the US.The Japanese prime minister declared in a lecture on Friday at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies that "it is very essential for Japan, the Unified States, and Europe to stand united in handling our respective relationship with China."
The "full breakdown" of the post-Cold War world order was marked by Russia's war against Ukraine, and if Moscow's use of force continues "elsewhere in the world, including Asia," he warned.
"The global community is experiencing a historic turning point. The worldwide system of freedom, openness, and stability that we have committed to upholding is currently in grave risk, according to Kishida.
"We will strengthen our deterrence and never permit any attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force."In addition to China's firing of ballistic missiles last year that fell in waters close to Japan, Kishida highlighted Japan's concern over China's military actions near the disputed Senkaku Islands (also known as the Diaoyu Islands in Chinese) and Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
US President Joe Biden, who met with Kishida earlier at the White House, commended Tokyo's "historic" defense build-up and reaffirmed the US' strong commitment to its alliance with Japan.
To make absolutely clear, Biden added, "the United States is totally, entirely, completely committed to the alliance and, more crucially, to Japan's defense."
Following seven decades of peace, Japan this month declared the largest military build-up since World War II, spurred on by worries about Chinese activities in the region. In response to concerns about regional security, especially North Korean and Chinese threats, Japan will increase its defense spending by 20 percent, or 6.8 trillion yen ($55 billion), setting a new high.
Japan is on a shopping binge and wants to purchase hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles, which are now solely in the arsenals of the US and the UK, as part of that new defense strategy. Additionally, Japan will create for the first time a "counter-strike" capability, which entails being able to target the missiles' launch sites.
The US and Japan agreed last week during meetings between their foreign and defense ministers that strikes in space might trigger their mutual defense treaty despite China's brisk satellite development.
On Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi also inked an agreement to collaborate on space exploration.
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