Japan-Britain defense cooperation pact to enter into force in October

Japan has said its treaty with Britain aimed at facilitating joint military exercises and strengthening defense cooperation will come into force next month amid China’s growing military influence in the Indo-Pacific region.

The promulgation of your Reciprocal Access Agreement Oct. 15 allows them to deploy their forces to each other’s countries for exercises and disaster relief operations, while easing restrictions on the transportation of weapons and supplies.

For Japan, it is the second RAA after one with australia that came into effect in August. Tokyo has had a similar pact with the United States since 1960, called the Status of Forces Agreement.

The move followed the approval of the pact by the Japanese parliament in April, along with the one involving Australia, to complete its internal approval processes.

The agreement was signed by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his British counterpart, Rishi Sunak, in London in January.

“We will improve interoperability between Japanese and British forces and deepen defense cooperation of the two countries using the agreement,” Defense Minister Minoru Kihara, who took over in the cabinet reshuffle, said at a news conference on Friday. on Wednesday.

According to the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the Ground Self-Defense Force and the British army will conduct joint training in Japan in November, which could take place under the new agreement.

Japan has been stepping up efforts to bolster security ties with like-minded countries to enhance deterrence against Beijing, which has become more militarily assertive in the East and South China Seas.

Like the RAA with Australia, the treaty includes an appendix giving Britain the authority to refuse the transfer of its soldiers accused of crimes in Japan, which maintains the death penalty, thus allowing them to avoid the death penalty.