With Russia, China in mind, Kishida considers attending Asian security meeting in Singapore

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is making arrangements to attend the Asian security conference known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, to be held June 10-12 in Singapore, e Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s maritime expansion in mind, Kishida plans to call on other countries to unite to thwart those who would use force to seek unilateral changes to the status quo, according to government sources.

e prime minister intends to urge countries to cooperate in areas including economic sanctions against Russia, saying its invasion shakes the foundations of the international order. He is also likely to share his concerns over issues related to the security environment in East Asia, including the expansion of China’s military power and North Korea’s missile launches.

Kishida is expected to make a nal decision a er considering such factors as the situation in Ukraine and the Diet schedule. If he goes to the security conference, it will be the rst time for a Japanese prime minister to attend the meeting since 2014, when then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe participated.

Last year, then Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga also considered attending the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, which is run by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, but the think tank canceled the event for the second year in a row amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (May 10)

WILL RUSSIA HEAD FOR JAPAN?

Former Prime Minister Taro Aso, currently vice president of the Liberal Democratic Party, has expressed strong concerns over Russia’s invasion of its western neighbor Ukraine and the threat it poses to its eastern neighbor Japan.

“Russia went westward, but there is no guarantee it won’t go eastward,” he said during a speech in Fukuoka on Saturday.

Aso stressed the need to strengthen the nation’s defense capabilities.

“In the 75 years since our Constitution came into e ect, the resolve to defend our own country with our own hands seems to have somehow been forgotten,” he said. (May 10)