Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Saturday renewed a pledge to reinforce his country’s military power and deepen its alliance with the United States under President-elect Donald Trump.
Ishiba made the announcement at an annual troop review held at Camp Asaka in the Tokyo suburbs, said the security environment surrounding Japan and the international community has significantly worsened due to escalating tensions with China, Russia and North Korea.
The Prime Minister stated that the breaches of the nation’s airspace by Chinese and Russian warplanes earlier in the year “not only violated Japanese sovereignty but also threatened the safety of Japan and are absolutely unacceptable.”
He pointed out threats from China’s accelerating military activity around Japanese coasts and from North Korea’s repeated missile firings.
“As we face the most severe and complex security environment, I will balance and strengthen Japan’s diplomacy and security,” Ishiba assured the people.
The Japan-US alliance is the lynchpin for achieving this, Ishiba said, pledging to elevate Japan’s ties with the United States and work closely with Trump as they agreed during a brief telephone conversation Thursday.
He took office on Oct. 1, replacing his unpopular predecessor Fumio Kishida and pledged to pursue the ongoing military buildup plan under the 2022 security strategy adopted by his predecessor, which calls for a counter-strike capability with long-range cruise-missiles, a break from its self-defense only principle.
The P.M affirmed he will pursue strengthening of command system to improve operation between Japanese and US troops.
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