He said his objective was to safeguard the credibility and deterrent power of the alliance and bolster "interoperability" with the Japanese.
"Interoperability" -- the focus on joint operations -- underscores a change in the way Tokyo and Washington are viewing their military relationship.
Still, Tokyo appears undecided on just how far it should go, and for good reason: Because of their country's disastrous pre-1945 experiment with expansionism, many Japanese remain deeply suspicious of any attempts to rebuild the military. Japan's neighbors, who suffered under Japanese colonialism, are also wary of the direction the talks are taking.
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