Joint statement on advancing defence cooperation, Tokyo, Japan

Japanese Minister of Defense Kishi Nobuo and Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles met in Tokyo on 15 June 2022.

The Ministers shared the view that the Shangri-La Dialogue, held on 10-12 June in Singapore, provided a valuable opportunity to exchange views and enhance cooperation with their regional partners. They reflected on the United States-Japan-Australia Trilateral Defence Ministers’ Meeting where the Ministers affirmed their countries’ strategic alignment and concurred to proceed with concrete and practical steps to ensure the security of the Indo-Pacific region. The TDMM Joint Statement can be found here.

The Ministers welcomed the Quad Leaders’ Summit, held three weeks earlier in Tokyo, and expressed their support for Quad Leaders’ positive vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific that is inclusive and resilient.

Recognising the critical importance of the bilateral defence relationship between Japan and Australia as Special Strategic Partners who share security challenges and interests in the Indo-Pacific region, the Ministers concurred to continue their consultations in Tokyo and to continue the ambitious upwards trajectory of defence cooperation, including to:

• Further elevate defence cooperation which will be facilitated by the Japan-Australia Reciprocal Access Agreement;
• Increase the sophistication of our exercises and activities in each domain to grow the interoperability of our forces;
• Leverage our respective strengths to advance our cooperation on science and technology, and strategic capabilities, and accelerate work on the development of an enduring framework to further science and technology cooperation between Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency and Defence Science and Technology Group;
• Increase cooperation in the area of space and cyber;
• Strengthen our mutual industrial bases through collaboration on supply chains;
• Enhance coordination of our activities, in working with partners in the Pacific and ASEAN.

The Ministers resolved to continue their close bilateral coordination in regional engagement, with the aim of contributing to a free, open, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific and maintaining the rules-based international order.

Media contact: media@defence.gov.au