Japanese Defense Minister Nobusuke Kishi announced on April 23 that from May 11-17, U.S. and French forces will conduct joint exercises with the Japanese Self-Defense Forces around Kyushu, southwest of mainland Japan. Kyodo News reported that the joint exercises of the three countries could be seen as a check on China’s troubling expansionist actions in the sea.
Nobuo Kishi told the media on Friday that the Japanese Land Self-Defense Force will conduct joint exercises with the French Army and the U.S. Marine Corps from May 11 to 17 at the Sagura Barracks in Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture, and the Kirishima Exercise Range across Ebino City, Miyazaki Prefecture, and Yusui Ting, Kagoshima Prefecture.
Nobuo Kishi also said that the air force will also participate in the exercise, in the western waters of Kyushu and airspace, while the French Navy and the Maritime Self-Defense Force will also conduct joint exercises to strengthen military cooperation between the three countries to further improve the tactics and capabilities of Japan’s Self-Defense Force defense of the island.
It is said that this will be the first major military exercise held on Japanese soil with the participation of ground forces from the three countries. Japan has recently been deeply disturbed by the strong posture of Chinese forces in the East and South China Seas, and has accelerated its military cooperation with allies in response.
During a meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House last week, the two sides issued a joint statement in which they unanimously expressed their unity in dealing with the Chinese threat.
Nobuo Kishi also told the media that France shares the idea of maintaining freedom and openness in the Indo-Pacific region. With the island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean and French Polynesia in the South Pacific, France has strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific region that cannot be ignored.
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