Kishida, Macron agree to start negotiations on joint drill accord

PARIS — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and French President Emmanuel Macron, meeting in Paris on May 2, concurred on bolstering bilateral security cooperation and agreed on the start of negotiations for an accord to facilitate joint drills between the Self-Defense Forces and the French Army.

The aim of reaching a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) enabling joint drills between Japan and France is to build a partnership for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region in light of China’s maritime hegemony.

The two governments have been steadily deepening security ties, including by signing an Acquisition and Cross Servicing Agreement (ACSA) in 2019 that enables the SDF and French forces to provide each other with food and fuel.

Last year, Japan and France conducted joint exercises in New Caledonia in the South Pacific, Miyazaki Prefecture and other locations as the countries cranked up interactions between them.

At the meeting on May 2, Kishida and Macron welcomed these developments and confirmed they would work to strengthen cooperation toward the realization of a free and open Indo-Pacific.

An RAA defines the legal status of the SDF and the military of the partner country when they operate on each other’s sovereign territory. It exempts visiting personnel from immigration requirements for temporary stays for joint drills and other purposes, while also simplifying procedures for bringing in weapons and ammunition, thus facilitating more drills.

With China in mind, Japan has already concluded RAAs with Australia and the United Kingdom, and is currently negotiating one with the Philippines.

In response, Beijing is trying to break up the ring of allied forces opposing it. Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to visit France on May 5 to meet with Macron. It is believed that by strengthening ties with France, which traditionally has placed importance on diplomatic independence, Beijing intends to disrupt coordination among the countries that are aligned against it.

Kishida is seen as making a preemptive strike against such action by appealing for a strong Japan-France relationship prior to Xi’s visit to France.

Kishida and Macron also discussed the situations in Ukraine and Gaza during a working lunch.