The partnership is the first security-related partnership the European Union has signed with an Indo-Pacific country.
Japan and the European Union (EU) announced a security and defense partnership on Friday, as they seek to intensify military ties, including joint exercises and exchanges between their respective defense industries.
Amid rising tensions with China, North Korea and Russia, the partnership is the first security-related partnership the EU has concluded with an Indo-Pacific country, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya told the journalists and the EU foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell.
“We live in a very dangerous world. We live in a world of growing rivalries, weather accidents and threats of war. And there is only one antidote to this challenging world: association between friends. This is a historic and very timely step, taking into account the situation of our two regions,” said Borrell.
The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy is in Tokyo as part of a trip to East Asia, which includes South Korea, where he will also maintain a strategic dialogue, highlighting the growing involvement of the EU in the Indo-Pacific region, as Beijing and Moscow step up joint military activities and North Korea sends troops to Russia.
The talks took place a day after North Korea tested what is believed to be a new type of ICBM-class ballistic missile.
According to an EU statement, Borrell and Iwaya also shared “great concern” about deepening military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, including the deployment of North Korean troops in Russia and the transfer of weapons between the two countries.
The two officials reiterated their commitment to supporting Ukraine and condemned Russian aggression.
Japan, within the framework of a new security strategy approved in 2022, has been rapidly accelerating military construction through the alliance with the United States, the only ally in the treaty, and other partners, including Australia, the United Kingdom and several European and Indian countries. -Pacific countries, to deter an increasingly assertive China.
Tokyo has also significantly relaxed its voluntary ban on arms exports as it seeks to expand its defense industry and play a larger role globally. Japan is jointly developing a next-generation fighter jet with the United Kingdom and Italy.
According to a joint statement, and within the framework of the new partnership, Japan and the EU affirmed that Europe and the Indo-Pacific region are “highly interconnected and interdependent” and agreed to maintain regular dialogue at the working level on security and defense and joint meetings. naval exercises, including other countries.
The two sides stated that they will also cooperate in the field of cybersecurity and space defense, in addition to studying an information exchange pact, promoting the exchange of information on the defense industry and cooperating on nuclear disarmament efforts.
Iwaya stated that relations between Japan and the EU “are stronger than ever” and that the two sides “will continue to cooperate closely in a wide range of areas, including security.”
Also today, Borrell met with Japanese Defense Minister General Nakatani and shared the view that security in Europe and the Indo-Pacific are interconnected, having agreed to deepen defense cooperation.
In a statement, the Japanese Defense Ministry highlighted that the two officials expressed serious concern about North Korea’s missile development program and its growing military cooperation with Russia, stating that they constitute important challenges for the international community.
“We reaffirm the need to strengthen cooperation between the EU and Japan on security and defence, particularly with regard to maritime security and cyber and hybrid threats, in a context of growing challenges in terms of regional and global security” Borrell stated on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
Source: Observadora
