“Following an hourlong meeting Sunday at the naval facility in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, pledged to step up cooperation ‘in various forms’ across a wide range of defense-related areas, including military-industrial cooperation.”
“Pistorius, who is on a two-day trip to Japan, said the two sides are also exploring the possibility of signing a visiting-forces pact that would facilitate reciprocal troop deployments.”
“To strengthen its network of international defense partnerships, Japan has signed three ‘reciprocal access agreements’ since 2022 with Australia, Britain and the Philippines. It is also finalizing one with France and negotiating another with Canada.”
“The German defense chief’s Japan trip marks the first leg of a broader regional tour that will also take Pistorius to Singapore and Australia, underscoring Berlin’s increasing strategic focus on the Indo-Pacific.”
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/03/23/japan/politics/defense-chief-meeting-german-japan/