TOKYO — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is in Japan on Tuesday to meet with Japanese officials and reaffirm the importance of their alliance and the U.S. commitment to regional security as threats from China and North Korea increase.
Austin’s visit also comes amid growing safety concerns Osprey military aircraft grounded in the United States after a near-crash at Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico last month. The incident, caused by weakened metal parts, was similar to a fatal crash last year near southwestern Japan.
The US measure did not affect ospreys managed by Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force. Japanese officials are discussing the issue with the US military and will “respond appropriately,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters on Tuesday.
Austin will hold separate talks with his Japanese counterpart General Nakatani And Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba later Tuesday, according to Japanese officials.
Nakatani told reporters that cooperation between Japan and the US, as well as with South Korea and other partners, is important as tensions escalate in the region.
The trilateral partnership between Japan, the US and South Korea has significantly strengthened under President Joe Biden’s administration, but faces new uncertainty amid ongoing political unrest in South Korea.
On Monday, Austin greeted crew members from the USS George Washington, a nuclear-powered flagship docked at the U.S. Naval Base in Yokosuka, near Tokyo.
Austin underscored the importance of U.S. cooperation with allies and partners in the region as he singled out China as the only country in the world with the intent and ability to change the rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific, the U.S. department said . of Defense.
“We want this region to remain open to freedom of navigation and the ability to fly the skies over international airways,” Austin said on the Defense Department website.
“We will work with allies and partners to ensure we can do just that,” he added.
The US carrier, which is under maintenance in Yokosuka, will carry the advanced F-35C stealth fighter squadron currently based at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan’s southwestern Yamaguchi Prefecture.