Secretary of War Pete Hegseth met with Japan's Minister of Defense Shinjirō in the Philippines. The two leaders reaffirmed the indispensable role of the U.S.-Japan Alliance in preserving peace and stability in the Pacific. They underscored the importance of increased defense investment and continued strategic alignment to strengthen deterrence and implement an effective denial defense in the First Island Chain.
Secretary Hegseth and Minister Koizumi discussed efforts to strengthen deterrence through enhanced bilateral access, presence, and realistic training and exercises across Japan, including live fire exercises. They agreed to accelerate actions to enable more agile and resilient operations, including flexible use of facilities and opportunities to rehearse distributed operations in support of a credible denial defense.
Secretary Hegseth welcomed Japan's efforts to strengthen its defense industrial capacity, and both leaders committed to continue close coordination on critical munitions production.
