Japan plans to discuss technical cooperation with the defense organization AUKUS at a summit in Washington next month, according to comments from a senior US diplomat published in Japanese media on Friday.
The United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom established the AUKUS Security Partnership in 2021, aiming to jointly strengthen military capabilities to counter China's growing assertiveness in the region.
Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell told Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun and other sources that when Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with U.S. President Joe Biden on April 10, the possibility of cooperation with Japan regarding AUKUS technology goals will be on the agenda. He said he was deaf.
“It is clear that there are areas where Japan can demonstrate considerable capabilities in the pursuit of security and technology that advance common goals,” he said, according to the Nikkei Shimbun.
“These include advanced robotics, cyber initiatives, and some efforts in anti-submarine warfare.”
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The AUKUS partnership has two main practical objectives, the first being to provide Australia with a nuclear attack submarine fleet.
The second is to develop advanced military capabilities such as AI, underwater drones, and hypersonic technology.
An official at the Japanese embassy in Australia told AFP earlier this month that the Japanese government was considering ways to deepen cooperation on the second of these goals.
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Campbell said in an interview that Japan has “made it very clear” that it has no interest in participating in submarine development.
The Australian Submarine Agency announced on Thursday that Britain's BAE Systems will produce an unspecified number of state-of-the-art AUKUS submarines, with deliveries to begin in the early 2040s.
And on Friday, Australia insisted a landmark agreement to develop nuclear submarines would go ahead despite growing concerns about costs, capabilities and US isolationism if Donald Trump is re-elected. .
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Defense Minister Richard Marles told reporters: “This is going to happen and we need to do it.”
Nikkei Shimbun previously reported that Kishida may announce Japan's cooperation on the AUKUS partnership in Washington.
Mr. Kishida is also scheduled to participate in the first trilateral summit meeting with the United States and the Philippines on April 11.
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