Abe: 'Strengthening the Japan-US alliance is vital'

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Japanese PM Shinzo Abe on Monday said that Japan needed to boost its defenses and that "strengthening the Japan-US alliance is vital" to ensuring stability in the region.

"We have to deter the DPRK’s repeated provocative acts," he said, noting recent joint drills with the United States in the Sea of Japan and defense cooperation with countries including Australia.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (L) and Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera review the guard of honour at the Defence Ministry in Tokyo on September 11, 2017. /AFP Photo

In a speech to senior officers of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, Abe stated: "We have to take all appropriate measures against [incidents such as] the DPRK’s missile launch over Japan."

He added that he had asked his defense minister to draw up a blueprint for Japan's medium-term defense strategy.

Speaking at the same meeting, Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said he hoped to quickly introduce Aegis Ashore, a land-based version of the maritime Aegis missile-defense system.

Abe's comments come as the US pushes for the United Nations Security Council to vote on harsher sanctions on the DPRK.

Diplomats said that the new draft resolution which circulated recently is slightly less tough than the original but includes a "progressive" oil embargo on Pyongyang.

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Source(s): AFP