Japan and France agreed Saturday on a new road map to bolster defense and economic security cooperation between their countries, with China's expanding clout in the Indo-Pacific region apparently in mind. The road map, which set goals for cooperation in a broad range of areas through 2027, called for maintaining a free and open international order based on the rule of law. The agreement was announced after a telephone conversation between Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and French President Emmanuel Macron in the United Arab Emirates. The two countries also agreed in their road map to hold a working-level meeting on economic security soon and affirmed their cooperation on developing supply chains for critical minerals such as rare earths. On defense, Japan and France said they will speed up discussions on concluding their Reciprocal Access Agreement.

Source: The Guardian December 03, 2023 03:10 UTC