To Counter the CCP’s Threat, Britain and Japan Signs Defense Pact

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida departed from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport in the early morning of January 9th on a government plane to start a tour of Europe and the US. According to his itinerary, he will visit France, Italy, the UK, Canada, and the US in turn.

 After his visit to Italy, Fumio Kishida arrived in the UK today and met with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in London to discuss matters related to Japan’s G7 rotating presidency this year. During the meeting, the two sides signed the “”Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA)””, which allows British troops to be stationed in Japan.

 Britain said that this agreement is the “”most important defense agreement”” between Britain and Japan since the “”Anglo-Japanese Alliance”” a century ago in 1902. The agreement will not only strengthen and accelerate defense and security cooperation between Britain and Japan but will also allow both sides to station troops in each other’s territory, consolidate Britain’s commitment to security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, and facilitate the planning and conduct of larger and more complex military drills by the armed forces of both sides, while also making Britain the first country in Europe to sign a Reciprocal Access Agreement with Japan.

 On the same day, Japan reached a consensus on security cooperation with the U.S. and with the U.K. Some Japanese media quoted government sources as saying that the moves were made in response to the Chinese Communist Party’s threat and to increase security efforts.