Japan Must Strengthen NATO Ties to Safeguard Global Peace, PM Says
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Russia's deepening military cooperation with North Korea has underlined the need for Japan to forge closer ties with NATO as regional security threats become increasingly intertwined, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said.
In written remarks to Reuters ahead of his attendance at a NATO summit in Washington, DC, this week, Kishida also signaled concern over Beijing's alleged role in aiding Moscow in the war in Ukraine, although he did not name China.
"Japan is determined to strengthen its cooperation with NATO and its partners," Kishida added.
The world, the Japanese leader said, should not tolerate attempts by some countries to disrupt the established international order and reiterated a warning that Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow. He also urged cooperation to confront new security threats that transcend geographical boundaries, such as cyber-attacks and conflicts in space.
South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, which along with Japan are known as the Indo-Pacific Four (IP4), are also attending the July 10-11 meeting with NATO leaders.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told Reuters this week that he planned to discuss what he called the threat Pyongyang poses to Europe by deepening its Russia ties.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un signed a mutual defense pledge with Russia last month during President Valdimir Putin's first visit to Pyongyang in 24 years, and expressed his "full support" for Russia.