United States: A joint statement issued after talks between the US and Japanese foreign and defence ministers stated that the two countries have unveiled plans to strengthen security cooperation in the face of shared worries about China.

According to the statement, China presented an “unprecedented” threat to international order, and the two countries pledged to position their alliance to “prevail in a new era of strategic competition.”

The statement from Secretary of State Mr. Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Mr. Lloyd Austin, and their Japanese counterparts, Mr. Yoshimasa Hayashi and Mr. Yasukazu Hamada, remarked that “China’s foreign policy seeks to reshape the international order to its benefit and to employ China’s growing political, economic, military, and technological power to that end.”

“This behavior is of serious concern to the alliance and the entire international community and represents the greatest strategic challenge in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond,” the statement added.

“We’re replacing an artillery regiment with an outfit that’s more lethal, more agile, and more capable,” Mr. Austin commented. The defense secretary further added that “the move would bolster deterrence in the region and allow us to defend Japan and its people more effectively.”

The representatives of both countries agreed to adjust the presence of American troops on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa in order to strengthen anti-ship capabilities that would be needed in the event of a Chinese incursion into Taiwan or other hostile acts in the South or East China seas.

The announcement is widely considered to be a “strong signal to China” and was made as part of a series of initiatives aimed at a rapid acceleration of security and intelligence ties between the countries.

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