Japan, France to launch negotiations on new security pact

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – France and Japan have reached an agreement to initiate talks on a new bilateral security pact, an official statement said Friday.

The agreement was reached Thursday during official talks in Paris where President Emmanuel Macron hosted visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, said the statement released by Tokyo.

The two leaders noted the multilayered developments of Japan-France cooperation in the wider Asia-Pacific region and launched negotiations on the Japan-France Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), expecting “steady progress,” according to the statement.

The RAA is an agreement that establishes, in particular, procedures for cooperative activities conducted by the defense forces of one country while visiting the other. It also defines the status of the visiting forces, the statement further explained.

Tokyo has similar arrangements with Australia and the UK that allow their defense forces to smoothly access each other's territory for varied purposes. It is expected to begin talks on a similar pact with the Philippines.

Paris and Tokyo also signed a joint declaration of cooperation on critical minerals, while Macron and Kishida agreed to strengthen collaboration on economic security.

The French president and Japanese prime minister also discussed the situation in the Middle East, Ukraine, and the latest developments in the Asia-Pacific region, including China and North Korea.

The meeting in Paris comes just days ahead of the Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to France.