TOKIO —The United States needs the aid of Japan to quickly replenish its missile inventory amid conflicts in middle East y Ukraine, and as Washington seeks to maintain credible its deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, the US ambassador to Japan indicated on Monday.
“It is clear that the United States military industrial base cannot meet all of our strategic challenges and obligations,” said Ambassador Rahm Emanuel.
The diplomat gave the message as Japan and the United States held their first talks to accelerate military industrial cooperation, after an agreement in April between Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Joe Biden.
“The goal here is no more meetings. The objective is production,” said Emanuel. “Those who want to harm the United States are not going to wait for our industrial capacity to develop.”
Work groups
The ambassador added that China’s shipbuilding capacity will surpass that of the United States and that repairs in Japan of US Navy ships and US military aircraft deployed in the region can give the United States the industrial capacity to focus on construction. of new ships.
This week’s talks in Tokyo are between the Pentagon’s Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, William LaPlante, and his Japanese counterpart Masaki Fukasawa, head of the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency.
Both agreed to establish working groups for the co-production of missiles and the maintenance and repair of US Navy ships and Air Force aircraft in the region, the Japanese Ministry of Defense detailed in a statement. There will also be a group to discuss a stronger supply chain.
In December, Japan eased its arms export restrictions to align with U.S. policy. request to ship PAC-3 surface-to-air missile interceptors produced in Japan under a U.S. license to supplement inventory that has declined due to its support for Ukraine.
Source: With information from AP
