Space attack to trigger U.S.-Japan mutual defense

An agile American Marine force will also deploy to Japan

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States said Wednesday that attacks in space would invoke its defense treaty with Japan and announced the deployment of a more agile Marine unit on its ally’s soil as alarm grows over China.

Weeks after unveiling plans to ramp up security spending, Japan sent its defense and foreign ministers to Washington where the two countries issued a statement vowing to “modernize the alliance in order to address the increasingly severe security environment.”

As China makes rapid advances in satellites, the US and Japan warned in their statement that “attacks to, from or within space present a clear challenge to the security of the alliance” that could invoke Article Five of their mutual defense treaty, which considers an attack on one an attack on both.

The talks finalized a plan by the US to send a so-called Marine Littoral Regiment, a more agile unit that can operate defenses both by sea and air, to Okinawa, the southern Japanese island strategically close to Taiwan.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the unit would be in place by 2025 from a reorganization of an existing artillery regiment.

“I think this is going to contribute in a major way in our effort to help defend Japan and also promote a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Austin said, using the US turn of phrase for an Asia without Chinese dominance.

He reiterated the US commitment to defend Japan including over islets, known as the Senkaku by Tokyo and the Diaoyu by Beijing, contested by China.

Okinawa, under US control until 1972, remains home to more than half of the 50,000 American troops in Japan and many have long seethed with resentment at the burden of the bases including the noise and occasional crimes by US troops.

The talks come two days before a visit by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is touring Group of Seven nations to kick off Japan’s leadership year of the elite club and earlier Wednesday in London also boosted defense ties with Britain.