Defense Minister Hamada met with the defense ministers of the United Kingdom and Italy, who are visiting the Japan. The three countries confirmed that they will cooperate closely on the joint development of the next fighter aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, which has been agreed upon by the three countries.
On the afternoon of November 16, Defense Minister Hamada held talks for approximately one hour with British Defense Minister Wallace and Italian Defense Minister Closet, who are visiting Japan at the Ministry of Defense.
In his opening remarks, Minister Hamada stated, "The joint development of the next-generation fighter aircraft will serve as the foundation for wide-ranging cooperation with the United Kingdom and Italy for generations to come, and will greatly contribute to strengthening global security.
On that basis, the three ministers confirmed that the government and companies will work together and work closely together on the next fighter aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, which they agreed to jointly develop in December last year.
Executives from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan participating in the joint development, BAE Systems in the U.K., and Leonardo in Italy were also present at the meeting.
The Ministry of Defense hopes to begin deploying the next generation of fighters to the Self-Defense Forces by around 1.
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Regarding the next fighter of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Japan initially sought joint development with its ally the United States, but negotiations were difficult and it switched to joint development by three countries with the United Kingdom and Italy.
According to a senior official of the Ministry of Defense, the background was the difference in the timing of the development of the next fighter jet between Japan and the United States and the issues surrounding how to share confidential information.
The Japan initially selected Lockheed Martin of the United States as a candidate company to receive technical support in 3 and was in discussions.
However, the U.S. side has said that it will focus on the development of unmanned aircraft in the future, and it has become clear that there is no clear concept of the fighter aircraft that pilots will ride after the current F2020.
In addition, even if development proceeded with the American side, the reluctance to disclose confidential information of the fighter system's system to the Japan made it difficult to repair and repair it in the Japan after development.
On the other hand, with the United Kingdom, the development period of the mid-35s coincides with the Japan, the performance required for the aircraft is similar in terms of stealth, etc., and confidential information can be shared, so discussions are proceeding in the direction of standardizing the aircraft, and Italy has joined them.
In addition, in conjunction with the announcement of the joint development of the three countries, Japan and the United States have announced that they will start concrete cooperation with a view to joint research toward the development of unmanned aerial vehicles to support the next generation of fighter aircraft.
A senior official of the Ministry of Defense said, "The 'black box' in which information is not disclosed with the United States was a major concern, and by successfully separating the development of next-generation fighter aircraft in the three countries of Japan, the UK, and Italy, and the development of unmanned aircraft with the United States, the relationship between each country has subsided in a win-win relationship."