WASHINGTON / TOKYO, Jan. 7 (Reuters) – The United States and Japan to sign a research and development agreement to facilitate their collaboration in the fight against new defense threats, including hypersonic missiles and military capabilities space, declared Thursday the head of the American diplomacy.
Antony Blinken made the announcement at the opening of a virtual meeting between the American and Japanese Foreign and Defense Ministers.
This videoconference was to be used to discuss ways to strengthen the security ties between the two countries, mainly the role that Japan can play in a climate of growing tensions in the region about Taiwan and because of the advances of the ballistics program of North Korea. .
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the meeting will help shape the contours of the security alliance in the future, including evolving missions to “reflect Japan’s growing ability to contribute to regional peace and stability.”
Noting growing threats from Russia, China and North Korea, Antony Blinken said it was “more vital than ever” to continue to strengthen and modernize the long-standing alliance between Washington and Tokyo.
“We are launching a new research and development agreement that will make it easier for our scientists and engineers to collaborate on emerging defense issues,” the US secretary of state said. (Report David Brunnstrom, Dan Whitcomb, Rami Ayyub and Ju-min Park; French version Jean Terzian)