Japan plans to discuss defense cooperation issues with Uzbekistan

Japan is considering possible options for cooperation with Uzbekistan in the fields of defense, security, and military affairs. This was announced by Kitamura Toshihiro, the press secretary of Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwai, at a closed press briefing in Tashkent.

On August 26–27, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwai paid an official visit to Uzbekistan. He was received by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and held talks with his counterpart, Bakhtiyor Saidov. The sides discussed upcoming events, including preparations for the Central Asia–Japan summit in the 5+1 format.

At present, Uzbekistan and Japan are working to elevate their cooperation to the level of a strategic partnership. During the visit of the Japanese Foreign Minister to Uzbekistan, a joint statement consisting of 16 points was adopted together with Bakhtiyor Saidov. The statement acknowledged that high-level dialogue between the two countries has been elevated to a strategic level at the level of foreign ministers. But does this also imply future cooperation in the military sphere? What objectives does Japan pursue in defense and security matters with Uzbekistan? QALAMPIR.UZ correspondent addressed these questions to Kitamura Toshihiro, representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.

"Since WWII, we have pursued our foreign policy based on the principle of peace. However, the current tensions in East Asia, such as North Korea’s missile program and China’s push for regional hegemony, show that we must reconsider this approach. On this matter, we stand united with our partners in Europe, the United States, and Asia. At present, we are conducting naval exercises with the United Kingdom and Norway. For now, cooperation with Uzbekistan in this field is difficult due to the country’s lack of access to the sea, but we are exploring other options. First and foremost, we need to hold negotiations on this issue.

In addition, we are negotiating with Italy and the UK on the production of fighter jets. However, I believe every military partnership must be reviewed regularly. Cooperation with Uzbekistan should also be considered, but for this, we first need to understand your specific goals. We must determine whether military cooperation between Central Asia and Japan corresponds to our mutual interests,” he said.

It is worth noting that in the joint statement adopted by the ministers of the two countries, the parties emphasized the importance of joint efforts in combating terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, organized crime, and other potential threats to regional and international security.