Australia hails ‘shared vision’, as defence minister set to visit Japan

Canberra says it seeks to marque aboriginal interaction with the caller medication of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles volition caput to Japan connected Saturday for talks with his Japanese counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, arsenic the allies question to beforehand bilateral defence practice amid increasing hostility successful the Asia Pacific.

An Australian authorities quality merchandise connected Friday said Canberra is seeking to marque aboriginal interaction with the caller medication of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, adding that Australia and Japan person a “shared imaginativeness for our region” amid “increasingly analyzable planetary challenges”.

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“Our narration with Japan continues to turn from spot to spot – underpinned by adjacent strategical alignment, communal ambition and tremendous potential,” Marles said.

“I look guardant to gathering with Minister Koizumi to advancement our already beardown defence narration adjacent further,” helium added.

At a media briefing up of the meeting, Koizumi said, “We program to stock the knowing of the determination concern betwixt the 2 countries and clasp factual discussions for further advancement successful Japan-Australia defence cooperation.”

In August, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s authorities granted a declaration to Japanese steadfast Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to conception 11 Mogami-class frigates. Australia volition get 11 vessels to bolster the Royal Australian Navy fleet, successful a declaration reportedly worthy $10 cardinal Australian dollars (some $6.5bn).

The woody represents the astir important defence export Japan has undertaken since lifting its subject export prohibition successful 2014, arsenic it moves further distant from its post-World War II pacifist stance.

The archetypal 3 frigates volition beryllium built successful Japan, with the archetypal of those scheduled to beryllium delivered to Australia successful 2029 and operational successful 2030. The remaining vessels volition reportedly beryllium built successful Western Australia.

Koizumi said Marles is acceptable to circuit the firm’s shipyard successful the metropolis of Nagasaki successful confederate Japan during his visit.

Described arsenic “larger and much lethal” than Australia’s existent Anzac-class frigates, Mogami-class warships are precocious stealth frigates susceptible of launching long-range missiles and person an operational scope of up to 10,000 nautical miles (18,520km).

The Australian subject intends to usage the Mogami-class frigates to unafraid captious maritime commercialized routes and reenforce its bluish defences crossed the Indian and Pacific oceans – regions wherever China continues to grow its subject presence.

Relations betwixt Beijing and Canberra person proven fraught implicit the past decade, with the play marked by repeated disagreements implicit nationalist information and competing interests across the immense Pacific region.

Though attempts person been made to amended ties – with Chinese President Xi Jinping declaring that relations had “turned around” arsenic helium hosted Albanese successful Beijing successful July – tensions remain, astir notably successful the disputed South China Sea.

In a code connected Tuesday, Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong accused China of projecting its subject powerfulness into the Asia Pacific “without the transparency that the portion expects”.

“China continues to asseverate its strategical influence, including done economical and information means, and is much often projecting its subject powerfulness further into our region,” Wong said.

China’s ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian has antecedently said Beijing has nary subject strategy successful the Pacific Islands and Canberra should not beryllium concerned.

Meanwhile, relations betwixt Japan and China person deteriorated to their lowest constituent successful years implicit caller weeks aft Prime Minister Takaichi remarked successful parliament that a hypothetical Chinese onslaught connected Taiwan could punctual a subject absorption from Tokyo.

The comments infuriated Communist Party officials successful Beijing, who respect Taiwan arsenic a breakaway state of China, contempt having ne'er ruled the democratically governed island.

Marles is besides expected to sojourn Washington adjacent week to conscionable with the US and British defence secretaries for talks connected the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine programme.

A US authoritative said connected Thursday that the Pentagon has finished its reappraisal of the program to present nuclear-powered submarines to Australia and identified areas to spot the inaugural connected the “strongest imaginable footing”.