Ground Self-Defense Force to joint training with French Army US Marine Corps Training in Japan First with French Army

The Ground Self-Defense Force will conduct joint training with the French Army and the US Marine Corps next month.

This is the first time that the Ground Self-Defense Force has been training with the French Army in Japan, and it seems that the aim is to promote multilateral cooperation with China in mind, which is strengthening its marine advancement.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the Ground Self-Defense Force will conduct joint training with the French Army and the United States Marine Corps from May 11 to 17, centering on the Kirishima Exercise Area, which straddles Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures.

From the Self-Defense Forces, a specialized unit "Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade" that conducts landing operations when the islands are invaded will participate, and the units of each country will confirm the procedure for landing with the Self-Defense Forces helicopter or the US Marine Corps Osprey. That is.

In addition, since the French Army has a lot of experience dealing with terrorism, we would like to jointly carry out rush training to the building to improve our skills.

This is the first time that the Ground Self-Defense Force has been training with the French Army in Japan, and it seems that the aim is to appeal that it is strengthening cooperation not only with the United States but also with multiple countries, with China in mind, which is strengthening the movement to advance into the ocean. I will.

On the other hand, France has a keen interest in the security of the Indo-Pacific region, which has overseas territories, and the background to the decision to participate in this training is the military presence in this region with China in mind. It seems that there is an intention to show.

Defense Minister Kishi "Strengthening cooperation and improving the tactical skills of the Self-Defense Forces"

At a press conference after the Cabinet meeting, Defense Minister Kishi said, "France is Europe's only country with a permanent military presence in the Indo-Pacific region and a fellow country that shares the vision of a'free and open Indo-Pacific'. We also want to strengthen cooperation between the Self-Defense Forces, the US and French forces, and further improve the Self-Defense Forces' tactical skills in island defense through a series of joint training on land and at sea. "