Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in his Visit to London was able to sign a new defence deal with United Kingdom. This comes after his recent move of initiating country’s biggest military buildup since World War 2. This defence deal is seen as a way to bolster ties with G7 partners and to tackle China’s growing aggression.
UK’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Japanese PM Kishida signed the deal at the tower of London on Wednesday, paving the way for two countries to deploy forces on each other’s soil for training and other operations. Japan holds the G7 presidency and this trip to London comes as a part of Japanese PM’s tour of these seven-member countries.
“This Reciprocal Access Agreement is hugely significant for both our nations – it cements our commitment to the Indo-Pacific and underlines our joint efforts to bolster economic security,” Sunak said in a statement. Sunak’s office called the deal with Japan as “the most significant defence agreement between the two countries in more than a century”.
“In this increasingly competitive world, it is more important than ever that democratic societies continue to stand shoulder to shoulder as we navigate the unprecedented global challenges of our time.”
Japan and UK both share a common view of China. Tokyo has described China as the “greatest strategic challenge ever” for its security and UK views Beijing as a “systematic challenge” to its values and interests as warned by Rishi Sunak in November.
China is now seen as a revisionist power with its recent aggressive maneuvers in South China sea. It has turned very vocal about its expansionist plans in South-China sea with its rapid buildup of naval forces that is about to match USA’s naval power in terms of number of warfare ships. Japan-UK deal is Tokyo’s latest effort to strengthen its alliances in an attempt to maintain the balance power in the region.