Latest news with #GenNakatani
4 days ago
- Sport
ASDF's Blue Impulse to Perform for Osaka Expo as Early as July 12
News from Japan Society Jun 24, 2025 17:55 (JST) Tokyo, June 24 (Jiji Press)--The Air Self-Defense Force's Blue Impulse aerobatics team is now expected to perform near the venue of the ongoing 2025 World Exposition in Osaka, western Japan, as early as July 12. On Tuesday, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani informed Takashi Endo of Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), secretary-general of a suprapartisan group of lawmakers aiming for the Expo's success, of the Blue Impulse flight. The commemorative flight will be officially announced as early as next Tuesday. Such a flight was initially scheduled for April 13, the Expo's opening day, but was canceled due to bad weather. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
The Independent
21-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Japan pulls out of talks with Trump administration after ‘being ordered to spend more on defence'
Japan has cancelled an annual security meeting with the US after the Donald Trump administration told the country it had to spend more on defence. US secretary of state Marco Rubio and defence secretary Pete Hegseth were set to meet the Japanese defence minister Gen Nakatani and foreign minister Takeshi Iwaya in Washington on 1 July for annual '2+2' security talks, a reference to the two senior ministers involved on each side. However, Japan cancelled the meeting after the US demanded Japan increase its defence spending to 3.5% of GDP, an increase on an earlier request of 3 per cent, according to a report on Friday by the Financial Times. This new demand was made the third-most senior official at the Pentagon Elbridge Colby, the paper added. Without citing any reason, a US official asking to be anonymous confirmed to Reuters that Japan had 'postponed' the meeting several weeks ago. Japan and the US have not discussed these targets for higher spending, a Japanese foreign ministry official requesting anonymity told Reuters. On Saturday, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said US allies in Asia need to spend 5 per cent of their GDP on defence. 'European allies are now setting the global standard for our alliances, especially in Asia, which is 5 per cent of GDP spending on defence. Given the enormous military buildup of China, as well as North Korea's ongoing nuclear and missile developments, it is only common sense for Asia-Pacific allies to move rapidly to step up to match Europe's pace and level of defence spending,' Mr Parnell told Nikkei. In March, Mr Trump had said: 'We have a great relationship with Japan, but we have an interesting deal with Japan that we have to protect them, but they don't have to protect us. 'That's the way the deal reads. We have to protect Japan. And, by the way, they make a fortune with us economically. I actually ask, who makes these deals?' The deal Mr Trump is referring to is the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, signed by Japan and the US in 1951 and revised in 1960, which requires the US to defend Japan if attacked. The deal combined with Japan's post-war pacifist constitution to provide the country with security guarantees, given it was obliged not to have an armed forces of its own. It did not include an obligation for Japan to defend the US in return. As part of the agreement, the US is able to maintain military bases in Japan, key strategic footholds west of the Pacific. Responding during a parliamentary session, Japanese prime minister Shigeru Ishiba said: 'Japan has no obligation to protect the US, that is true, but Japan is obliged to provide bases for the US. I am surprised that President Trump said this.' Japan's previous prime minister Fumio Kishida doubled the country's proposed defence spending from a previous cap of just 1 per cent in 2022, itself a controversial move for many Japanese people who still favour pacifism. One of the Japanese government's top priorities at the start of Mr Trump's second term was to convince him that this was already a big shift in Japan's commitment to defence spending. Mr Colby, who was then the nominee for US defence undersecretary, had said in March that Japan should go further and increase its defence budget to 3 per cent of its gross domestic product. 'It makes little sense for Japan, which is directly threatened by China and North Korea, to spend only 2 per cent,' he had said in a confirmation hearing before the Senate armed services committee. Responding to Mr Colby's statement, Mr Ishiba said other nations would not decide Japan's defence budget. 'Japan decides its defence budget by itself,' Mr Ishiba told a parliamentary committee meeting. 'It should not be decided based on what other nations tell it to do.' Japan's decision to cancel the 2+2 meeting comes while the two nations are in the midst of trade talks to avert Mr Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs of 25 per cent on Japanese cars and 24 per cent on other imports. The tariffs are currently paused until 9 July. Japan is set to attend the Nato summit on 24-25 June in The Hague, where it is expected that Mr Trump will press his demand for European allies to boost their defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP. No member of Nato currently spends 5 per cent of GDP on defence. That includes the US itself, which commits around 3.4 per cent. Poland is the closest to meeting the figure with 4.1 per cent, while the UK is ninth out of the 32 member states with 2.3 per cent.
Japan Times
21-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
SDF aircraft depart for Djibouti to evacuate Japanese nationals
Two Air Self-Defense Force transport aircraft left Japan for Djibouti on Saturday to prepare to evacuate Japanese nationals from Israel and Iran. The C-2 aircraft took off from the ASDF's Miho base in the western prefecture of Tottori around 2:45 to 3 p.m., heading for the East African country, where the SDF has a base. At the request of Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on Thursday ordered the Self-Defense Forces to prepare to transport Japanese nationals amid the escalating Israel-Iran conflict. Such a transportation mission using SDF aircraft was last conducted in Lebanon last October. On Friday, the Foreign Ministry said that a total of 87 Japanese nationals and their family members living in Israel and Iran, were evacuated to neighboring countries by Japanese government-chartered buses. About 1,000 Japanese nationals are believed to remain in Israel, and some 220 in Iran. The Japanese government plans to conduct a second round of evacuations by bus in Iran as early as Saturday.
Japan Times
21-06-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Japan scraps ‘two-plus-two' meeting with U.S. over defense spending demand, report says
Japan has canceled a high-level meeting with the U.S. set for July following a demand that Tokyo spend even more on defense, according to a media report. Tokyo abruptly scrapped annual 'two-plus-two' security talks involving the allies' top diplomats and defense chiefs less than two weeks before the meeting after the U.S. asked Japan to hike its defense budget to 3.5% of gross domestic product, the Financial Times reported Friday, citing unidentified sources. Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya had been scheduled to meet U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Washington on July 1 for the talks. Asked about the report at a news conference Friday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the U.S. had 'no comment on that at this point.' The Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The report said that the U.S. had initially asked Japan to spend 3% of GDP on defense, though Pentagon officials told The Japan Times earlier that it had set a 'global standard' for Tokyo and other U.S. allies to spend 5% of GDP on defense, in the first official confirmation that Washington is asking Tokyo to pump up its defense budget even further. The reason for the discrepancy was not immediately clear, though the Pentagon has been gripped by upheaval, including high-level dismissals and scandals in recent months under Hegseth. The Financial Times said the new, higher demand was made in recent weeks by Elbridge Colby, the Defense Department's No. 3 official, sparking anger in Tokyo. Colby said during his confirmation hearing in March that Japan 'should be spending at least 3% of GDP on defense as soon as possible,' citing the growing military threat from China and North Korea. Ostensibly pacifist Japan has in recent years undertaken a dramatic transformation of its security policy, including a five-year plan to ramp up defense spending to 2% of GDP by 2027. But pouring even more cash into defense coffers would come with significant political costs as the government focuses on domestic economic priorities and amid growing uncertainty over how to secure funds. Japan is currently getting far less bang for its buck as inflation and the yen's diminishing value erode its plans for the country's largest military buildup since World War II. The Financial Times report, citing a senior Japanese official, said the decision to cancel the meeting was also related to the July 20 Upper House election in which the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is expected to lose seats. In a statement given to The Japan Times on Friday, Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell pointed to a majority of NATO nations that have signed on to U.S. requests to boost defense spending to the 5% level, saying that 'European allies are now setting the global standard for our alliances, especially in Asia, which is 5% of GDP spending on defense.' Asked whether Parnell's remarks apply specifically to Japan, a U.S. defense official said it 'is inclusive for all of our allies across the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan.' Nakatani said in April that defense spending was within striking distance of the 2% target, at 1.8% of GDP. A Defense Ministry panel of experts, meanwhile, is reportedly set to recommend that the government consider hiking defense spending beyond 2%, and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said that future budgets "may top 2%, if needed,' depending on the security environment. Ishiba and senior Japanese officials, however, have said that Japan will not be told how much to spend, reiterating that what is most important is the substance of strengthened defense capabilities — not arbitrary figures. The issue of defense spending among U.S. allies and partners will be at the top of the agenda at next week's NATO leaders' summit in The Hague, which Ishiba is also set to attend. Tensions over security issues and trade have grown since Trump took office, with the U.S. president railing against his county's alliance with Japan, calling the partnership — which turns 65 this year — unfair and 'one-sided,' while threatening Tokyo and other allies and partners with onerous tariffs on key sectors such as automobiles and steel.
Japan Times
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
SDF planes fly to Djibouti to aid return of Japan nationals from Israel and Iran
As the conflict in Israel and Iran continues to intensify, Japan said Thursday it is deploying Self-Defense Forces aircraft to the nearby country of Djibouti to be on standby for a possible air evacuation of Japanese nationals. 'The situation in the Middle East is becoming increasingly tense as Israel and Iran continue to exchange attacks,' said Defense Minister Gen Nakatani. 'Ensuring the safety of Japanese citizens overseas is an important responsibility of the government.' There are currently around 1,000 Japanese people in Israel and 280 in Iran, according to the Foreign Ministry. On Thursday morning, under instructions from Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, Nakatani issued the order for two C-2 transport aircraft to be dispatched to the East African country as soon as possible once preparations are complete. The ministry plans to deploy 120 SDF members to the area, of which 10 members already set off early Thursday. 'We will do the utmost to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals overseas with a strong sense of vigilance and in close cooperation with the Foreign Ministry and other relevant ministries and agencies,' Nakatani added. While Japan's embassies in Israel and Iran are currently assisting Japanese nationals with a swift evacuation by land — given that the airports in both countries have closed during the conflict — the SDF aircraft will be on standby in Djibouti if any of them are unable to leave by land. Since the 2000s, SDF aircraft have been dispatched on eight different occasions to evacuate Japanese nationals overseas, according to the Foreign Ministry. In 2021, for example, SDF aircraft were deployed to Afghanistan following the takeover of the country by the Taliban, with one Japanese national and 14 Afghan workers evacuated. 'The Japanese embassies in Iran and Israel are currently preparing to evacuate (Japanese nationals) by bus to neighboring countries, and although we are unable to provide details for security reasons, we are making arrangements to do so as early as today,' Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Thursday morning. 'We will continue to follow the situation closely and take all possible measures to protect Japanese nationals, including further evacuation assistance,' he added.
