Defense Minister Kihara met with the Chief of Operations, the head of the U.S. Space Force, and confirmed that cooperation will be strengthened, noting that the importance of space domain security is increasing.
Defense Minister Kihara met with Chief of Operations Saltzman, U.S. Space Force, who visited the Ministry of Defense on the morning of May 25.
Minister Kihara stated, "In light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it is essential to secure superiority in the space domain," and conveyed that Japan is accelerating its efforts in the space domain.
"As the security environment becomes increasingly severe, I am convinced that the cooperative relationship with the U.S. Space Force will become even more important in order to strengthen capabilities in the space domain," he said.
In response, Operations Chief Saltzman replied, "There is no doubt that the space domain is very important for the Japan-U.S. Alliance, and I believe that further expanding cooperation between the Japan of the space domain and the United States will further strengthen the bilateral relationship," and confirmed that they would strengthen cooperation.