Japan, U.S. chiefs reaffirm defense of Senkakus

Japan and the United States have agreed to resolutely oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force as Beijing continues coercive maritime expansion in the East China Sea and other areas.

Gen. Koji Yamazaki, chief of staff of the Self-Defense Forces’ Joint Staff, and Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, held talks in Hawaii on Saturday and exchanged views on the situation in the Indo-Pacific region among other matters, according to the Joint Staff.

They also reaffirmed the United States’ “unwavering commitment” to the defense of Japan over Okinawa Prefecture’s Senkaku Islands and other areas under the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.

Yamazaki was in Hawaii to attend the change of command ceremony of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. (May 4)