Tokyo, Nov. 17, (dpa/GNA) – Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison is set to hold talks with Japanese counterpart Yoshihide Suga in Tokyo on Tuesday, becoming the first foreign leader to meet him on Japanese soil since he took office as premier in September.
The leaders of the two key US allies in the Asia-Pacific region are to discuss further defence cooperation toward a free and open Indo-Pacific amid China’s growing assertiveness in the region.
Morrison, who arrived in Tokyo in the morning, and Suga are expected to conclude a Reciprocal Access Agreement, which would streamline each country’s use of the other’s military bases for joint exercises and other purposes and play an important role in security relations in the Indo-Pacific.
“Japan’s very special relationship with Australia is not just an economic one. It’s not just a trade one. It’s not just a cultural and social one. Importantly it’s a strategic one,” Morrison told a news conference in Canberra last week.
Last month, the top diplomats from Japan, India, Australia and the United States, a group they call the Quad, met in Tokyo and agreed to enhance their cooperation, with an eye on the Covid-19 pandemic and China’s rising clout.
GNA