Japan's prime minister vows military buildup and deeper ties with the US as regional tension rises

TOKYO -- Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba renewed a pledge Saturday to build up his country’s military and deepen its alliance with the United States under President-elect Donald Trump.

Ishiba, who made the comments at an annual troop review held at Camp Asaka in the Tokyo suburbs, said the security environment surrounding Japan and the international community has significantly worsened due to escalating tensions with China, Russia and North Korea. He pledged to reinforce Japan’s military power.

He said breaches of Japanese airspace by Chinese and Russian warplanes earlier in the year “not only violated Japanese sovereignty but also threatened the safety of Japan, and are absolutely unacceptable.” He said Japan faces growing threats from China’s accelerating military activity around Japanese coasts and from North Korea’s repeated missile firings.

“As we face the most severe and complex security environment, I will balance and strengthen Japan’s diplomacy and security,” Ishiba said in his speech before hundreds of troops gathered for the ceremony.

The Japan-U.S. alliance is the lynchpin for achieving this, Ishiba said, pledging to elevate Japan's ties with the United States and work closely with Trump as they agreed during a brief telephone conversation Thursday.

Ishiba took office on Oct. 1, replacing his unpopular predecessor Fumio Kishida but his governing coalition badly lost a recent parliamentary election and could face difficulty pursuing his party’s planned policies and budget plans in coming months.

Ishiba pledged to pursue the ongoing military buildup plan under the 2022 security strategy adopted by his predecessor, Fumio Kishida, which calls for a counter-strike capability with long-range cruise-missiles, a break from its self-defense only principle. Ishiba said he will pursue strengthening of command system to improve operation between Japanese and U.S. troops.

After its devastating defeat in World War II, Japan had prioritized economic recovery over defense under its war-renouncing constitution, but has steadily strengthened its defense capability in recent years.

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AP video journalist Mayuko Ono contributed.