ID :
203882
Sat, 08/27/2011 - 18:08
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/203882
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Japan, Australia eye ministerial security talks in Nov
TOKYO, Aug. 27 Kyodo -
Japan and Australia are preparing to hold security talks involving their foreign and defense ministers in November in Australia, more than a month later than initially planned due to the political situation in Japan, government sources said Saturday.
The so-called ''two-plus-two'' talks have been postponed from mid-September at the request of the Japanese side after Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced his imminent resignation Friday, they said.
The Japanese foreign and defense ministries aim to put into effect before the talks a bilateral defense logistics accord, called the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement, which they signed last year to enable Japan's Self-Defense Forces and Australia's military to share food, fuel and other supplies during operations such as disaster relief missions.
They will seek to pass law revisions at an extraordinary Diet session, expected to be convened this fall, to add the provision of supplies to the Australian military as one of the SDF missions, the sources said.
The next meeting will be the fourth of its kind between Japan and Australia since its inauguration in 2007. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard agreed with Kan to convene the talks this fall during her visit in April.
The four ministers are expected to discuss bilateral coordination in tackling large-scale natural disasters and in U.N. peacekeeping operations and trilateral cooperation between their countries and the United States over security issues in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the sources.
After the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan's northeast, the Australian military dispatched an aircraft with a search and rescue team and also helped transport supplies and SDF personnel in Japan at the request of the Japanese government.
Japan and Australia are preparing to hold security talks involving their foreign and defense ministers in November in Australia, more than a month later than initially planned due to the political situation in Japan, government sources said Saturday.
The so-called ''two-plus-two'' talks have been postponed from mid-September at the request of the Japanese side after Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced his imminent resignation Friday, they said.
The Japanese foreign and defense ministries aim to put into effect before the talks a bilateral defense logistics accord, called the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement, which they signed last year to enable Japan's Self-Defense Forces and Australia's military to share food, fuel and other supplies during operations such as disaster relief missions.
They will seek to pass law revisions at an extraordinary Diet session, expected to be convened this fall, to add the provision of supplies to the Australian military as one of the SDF missions, the sources said.
The next meeting will be the fourth of its kind between Japan and Australia since its inauguration in 2007. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard agreed with Kan to convene the talks this fall during her visit in April.
The four ministers are expected to discuss bilateral coordination in tackling large-scale natural disasters and in U.N. peacekeeping operations and trilateral cooperation between their countries and the United States over security issues in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the sources.
After the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan's northeast, the Australian military dispatched an aircraft with a search and rescue team and also helped transport supplies and SDF personnel in Japan at the request of the Japanese government.
