Japan, Britain to Jointly Assist Southeast Asia

Singapore, June 5 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon on Sunday agreed on bilateral cooperation in assisting Southeast Asia. Later this month, the two countries will start formal working-group talks among their defense officials to help Southeast Asian countries improve their capacities mainly in the area of disaster relief, according to the agreement. The working-group talks are also expected to deal with assistance in the field of maritime security. In connection with China's increasing assertiveness in the East and South China Seas, Nakatani and Fallon also confirmed their countries' opposition to any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo. The two officials, who met on the sidelines of the ongoing Asia Security Summit in Singapore, agreed to promote defense cooperation between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the British military. Also confirmed was a plan to hold a joint drill involving SDF jets and British Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft in autumn. END