Hegseth calls Japan’s latest defence policy an ‘important step forward’

TOKYO - US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth on Oct 29 called for an early implementation of Japan’s plan to increase defence spending, but said he had made no specific demand on the scale of the increase in a meeting with his Japanese counterpart.

The comment comes a day after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told visiting US President Donald Trump that she was determined to bolster Japan’s defence capabilities and boost its defence spending.

“It’s an important step forward, and one that we hope will be implemented, and believe will be as soon as possible,” Mr Hegseth told a joint news conference with Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi after their Tokyo meeting.

Ms Takaichi said in her policy speech last week that the

government plans to raise Japan’s defence spending

to 2 per cent of gross domestic product in the current fiscal year to March 2026, from about 1.8 per cent currently.

That would be two years earlier than originally planned, but the level falls short of Nato’s new defence investment pledge of 5 per cent of GDP by 2035. 

Asked if he made a request to Mr Koizumi with a specific numerical target on Japan’s defence spending, Mr Hegseth said: “There were certainly no demands placed on Japan from the United States.”     

The Financial Times reported in June that Japan cancelled an annual high-level meeting with the United States after the Trump administration demanded it spend more on defence.

Japan regards the security environment surrounding the country as the gravest since the end of World War II due to destabilising factors in the region, including China's military expansion and North Korea’s missile and nuclear programmes.

“Make no mistake about it. Our alliance is critical to deterring Chinese military aggression,” Mr Hegseth said.

Japan already hosts the largest concentration of US forces overseas, including an aircraft carrier, a Marine expeditionary unit and dozens of fighter jets. REUTERS