Australia, Japan to bolster defense ties amid China rise

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga met with his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison in Tokyo on Tuesday for talks to bolster defense ties between the two US allies.

The leaders were discussing a legal framework which would allow their troops to visit each other's countries and conduct training and joint operations.

The 'Reciprocal Access Agreement' is aimed at countering China's growing assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region amid a transition in American leadership.

Suga and Morrison could conclude the deal as early as Tuesday.

If signed, it will be Japan's first such agreement since the 1960 status of forces agreement with the United States, which set bases for about 50,000 American troops to operate in and around Japan under the Japan-US security pact.

Japan is committed to maintain and deepen its 60-year-old alliance with the US as the cornerstone of Japanese diplomacy and security, but has in recent years sought to complement its regional defense by stepping up cooperation with others, especially Australia, amid China's growing maritime activity that has spread from the East and South China seas and beyond.

As a counter to China's influence, Japan has initiated the "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" vision of economic and security cooperation and recently hosted foreign ministerial talks among the countries known as the Quad that also includes the US, Australia and India.

They now seek to bring in more countries in Southeast Asia and beyond that share concerns about China's increasing assertiveness in the region.

China has defended its actions in the regional seas as peaceful and denies violating international rules.