JAKARTA POST


 

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Wednesday he and new US Secretary of State Antony Blinken agreed to strengthen the Japan-US alliance and achieve a free and open Indo-Pacific, sharing the view that the regional security situation is becoming increasingly severe.

In phone talks hours after Blinken won Senate confirmation as the chief US diplomat, Motegi welcomed affirmation by the new US administration that the Japan-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea fall under a bilateral security treaty. China claims sovereignty of the islands, calling them Diaoyu.

"His talks with Japan, with myself, were the second following Canada. This is proof that the (President Joe) Biden administration and Secretary of State Blinken value the importance of the Japan-US alliance and commit to the Indo-Pacific region," Motegi told reporters.

Blinken highlighted the importance of continued cooperation among the United States, Japan and South Korea in the talks with Motegi and stressed Biden's pledge to strengthen US alliances and engage with the world, the US State of Department said. It marked the second ministerial talks between Tokyo and Washington since Biden took office on Jan. 20.

Speaking by phone on Sunday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin reassured his Japanese counterpart Nobuo Kishi that Article 5 of the bilateral security pact applies to the Senkakus, meaning Washington will defend Tokyo's interests in the event of an armed attack against the islets. Motegi quoted Blinken as saying Wednesday morning in Tokyo that U.S. commitment over the Senkakus remains unchanged.

In the roughly 30-minute talks, the two ministers exchanged views on China, North Korea, South Korea and the situations in the East and South China seas, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said. The Japanese minister said he agreed with Blinken that preparations should begin for them to meet in person in Washington at an early date for more thorough discussions. In the talks, they affirmed close coordination involving Japan, the United States, Australia and India to tackle the challenges in their region and the international community, the ministry said.

They also pledged to jointly address the coronavirus pandemic, climate change and other global issues and to revitalize the framework of the Group of Seven major economies including the two countries, the ministry said.

Blinken has advocated working with US partners against China and vowed to review the entire approach and policy toward North Korea to get the reclusive state to abandon its nuclear weapons. Motegi said he won Blinken's backing for Japan's push for a quick resolution to the issue of North Korea's abduction of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980s.

The two also agreed to closely coordinate to reach an agreement at an early date on a replacement for the cost-sharing agreement for hosting American troops in Japan, the ministry said. The current five-year agreement will expire in March.