Monday morning, Japan and the United States announced that they had finalized a set of updated guidelines for bilateral defense cooperation, concluding a process that began last year. The new guidelines (available here) take into consideration Japan’s revised defense posture, including the Abe government’s decision to reinterpret a constitutional provision to allow for Japanese participation in collective self-defense. The changes reflect Japan’s worries over China’s rise and enduring concerns over North Korea’s nuclear program.
The announcement comes on the first day of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s week-long visit to the United States; Abe will meet U.S. President Barack Obama tomorrow and become the first Japanese prime minister to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress on April 29.
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