Japan and UK agree on defence pact amid China’s rise in Indo-Pacific
- ‘Ukraine may be tomorrow’s East Asia,’ warns PM Fumio Kishida after talks with British counterpart Boris Johnson in London
- Japan will also work with Britain to persuading the US to return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal, Kishida says
Kishida highly appreciated Britain’s increased involvement in the Indo-Pacific region, and the two leaders expressed “strong concern” about unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China seas and “rapid but not transparent” military build-up and activities, the Japanese government said.
The two leaders agreed to resolutely counter such unilateral attempts or economic coercion, the government said, without singling out China, the world’s second-largest economy that has been attempting to expand its sphere of influence with its military and economic clout.
02:20
Heightened tensions in Taiwan amid Russian invasion of Ukraine
“Ukraine may be tomorrow’s East Asia,” Kishida said at a press conference in London after meeting with Johnson. “Russia’s aggression is not an issue only for Europe. The international order encompassing the Indo-Pacific is at stake.”
