The UK and Japan agreed to deepen defense and economic ties, visiting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said yesterday.
“We set out a clear priority to build an even deeper partnership in the years to come,” Starmer said after a bilateral meeting in Tokyo. “That includes working together to strengthen our collective security, across the Euro-Atlantic and in the Indo-Pacific.”
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said they agreed to hold a meeting of British and Japanese foreign and defense ministers this year, adding that she wanted to discuss “cooperation towards realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific, the Middle East situation and Ukraine situation” with Starmer.
Photo: AP
Starmer arrived on a one-day Tokyo stop after a four-day visit in China, which drew warnings from US President Donald Trump.
Trump said it was “very dangerous” for its close ally to be dealing with China, although Starmer brushed off those comments.
Tokyo’s ties with Beijing have deteriorated since Takaichi suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily during a potential attack on Taiwan.
Starmer met with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Premier Li Qiang (李強) on Thursday, with both sides highlighting the need for closer ties.
He also signed a series of agreements there, with Downing Street announcing Beijing had agreed to visa-free travel for British citizens visiting China for less than 30 days.
No start date for that arrangement has been given yet.
Takaichi said the two leaders agreed that a bolstering of supply chains “including important minerals is urgently needed.”
There is concern that Beijing could choke off exports of the rare earths crucial for making everything from electric cars to missiles.
China, the world’s leading producer of such minerals, announced new export controls in October on rare earths and associated technologies.
They have also been a major sticking point in trade negotiations between China and the US.
The UK, Japan and Italy are also developing a new fighter jet after Tokyo relied for decades on the US for military hardware.
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