Reuters- Japan's foreign minister promised that his country would bolster its military to help the United States maintain regional security during a visit to a U.S. aircraft carrier patrolling Asian waters.
Today I was able to experience first hand the frontline of national security, Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in the hangar deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln sailing in waters south of Tokyo. He said that Japan will work closely with the United States to strengthen its defence capabilities.
Hayashi said in Japan that Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which it sees as an affront to international diplomatic norms, could encourage neighbouring China to use military muscle to take control of Taiwan and threaten nearby Japanese islands.
Japan has expressed concern about Beijing's deepening security ties with Moscow, which has included joint drills in the waters surrounding Japan.
China has said its intentions are peaceful in Asia.
Hayashi flew with the U.S. to the aircraft carrier from Tokyo. The invasion of Ukraine, described by Russian as a special operation, posed security risks in regions far beyond Europe, including the Indo Pacific, according to Ambassador Rahm Emanuel.
The two watched aircraft carrier flight operations from the deck of the Lincoln, which had just sailed from the Sea of Japan close to the Korean peninsula, where it had conducted naval exercises with Japan's Maritime Self Defense Force following the latest missile launch by North Korea.