US-Japan Alliance Strengthens Amid Indo-Pacific Security Talks

Senior officials from both countries held a series of high-level meetings spanning defence, diplomacy, and economic cooperation this week.

On January 15, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Japan Oue Sadamasa visited US Marine Corps Camp Blaz in Guam, where he received technical briefings from US forces on the status of ongoing construction projects. The visit highlighted Japan's close interest in US military posture and infrastructure development in the Western Pacific.

Oue exchanged views with Rear Adm. Brett Mietus, commander of Joint Region Marianas, and Brig. Gen. Charles D. Cooley, commander of the 36th Wing at Andersen Air Force Base, on Japan-US security policy and regional affairs. He also visited the South Pacific Memorial Park, where he laid a wreath and offered a silent prayer, a media release said.

In Washington, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau met Japanese Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Funakoshi Takehiro on Jan. 16 to review bilateral cooperation. According to a State Department readout, the two discussed "opportunities to advance economic and security cooperation" and reaffirmed "a shared commitment to the US-Japan Alliance as the cornerstone of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific."

The readout said Landau and Funakoshi also explored ways to further strengthen deterrence and expand security coordination in the region.

However, the week started with a meeting between Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Japanese Defence Minister Shinjirō Koizumi. Hegseth said the visit demonstrated "the actual physical strength of the US-Japanese alliance" and described the alliance as "one of the most remarkable relationships in the entire world."

Hegseth welcomed Japan's decision last year to increase defence spending, calling it "a really important step" that the United States appreciates.

"It's going to be hard-nosed realism, a practical commonsense approach that puts both of our vital national interests together and keeps the peace," Hegseth said, stressing the importance of realistic training and exercises to ensure "peace through strength."

Koizumi said the meeting reflected the depth and pace of bilateral engagement since he became defense minister in October. He said he held extensive discussions with US military leaders on responses to "an increasingly severe security environment" and emphasized the importance of linking a free and open Indo-Pacific with the Japan-US alliance and peace through strength.

The two leaders affirmed "the critical role of the US-Japan alliance to deterring aggression in the Indo-Pacific" and agreed to continue upgrading command-and-control architectures, make bilateral training and exercises more realistic, improve alliance force posture and presence, including in Japan's southwest islands, and maintain close cooperation on defense industrial base matters, said a readout.

Further, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama on January 12. Bessent thanked Katayama for attending the US critical minerals summit and emphasized the importance of critical minerals sovereignty among democratic nations.

A Treasury readout said Bessent reaffirmed his confidence in the US-Japan alliance, expressed appreciation for Japan's engagement on global minimum tax issues, and discussed concerns over excess exchange rate volatility and the need for sound formulation and communication of monetary policy.

- IANS