US, Japan agree to work together in event of Beijing-Taiwan military clash, sources say

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Japanese Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi agree to cooperate but do not discuss how a response should be coordinated

Tokyo is reviewing the possibility of using its Self-Defence Forces to protect US warships and aircraft in event of conflict over Taiwan

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Japanese Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi chats to US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin in Tokyo last week. Photo: Lisa Ferdinando/Dod/Planet Pix v

Published: 11:24am, 21 Mar 2021Updated: 3:41pm, 15 Jun 2021

Japanese and US defence chiefs agreed in their meeting last week in Tokyo to closely cooperate in the event of a military clash between mainland China and Taiwan, Japanese government sources said on Saturday.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin brought up the issue in talks with Japanese Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi on Tuesday, though there was no discussion on how their countries should coordinate their response to such an emergency, the sources said.

Tokyo’s policy on Beijing-Taiwan relations is to encourage dialogue for a peaceful solution to cross-strait tensions.

Taiwan and mainland China have been separately governed since they split as a result of a civil war in 1949. Beijing regards Taiwan as part of its territory, awaiting reunification.

A statement issued after talks between Kishi and Austin as well as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, also held on Tuesday, called for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

In the earlier meeting with Austin, Kishi referred to a recent increase in the number of Chinese warplanes crossing the median line in the Taiwan Strait and a need to study ways for the Japan Self-Defence Forces (SDF) to cooperate with US forces defending Taiwan in the event of Beijing aggression, they said.