Japan, NATO Adopt 1st Joint Political Statement

Tokyo, April 15 (Jiji Press)--Japan and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization released their first ever joint political declaration on Monday, agreeing to strengthen security cooperation in the face of North Korea's repeated provocations and China's maritime ambitions. "Japan and NATO are dedicated to the values of individual liberty, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law," said the statement, which was signed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and NATO Secretary-General Anders Rasmussen in Tokyo. "We acknowledge our shared strategic interests in promoting global peace, stability and prosperity, through pursuing a rules-based international order that promotes peaceful settlements of disputes," it said. Japan and NATO are "aware of the need to cooperate in order to face emerging security challenges," the declaration said. The joint declaration comes at a time when North Korea is threatening nuclear war against the United States, a member of NATO, and is poised to launch ballistic missiles, while Chinese government ships have made repeated incursions into Japanese waters near the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture, southern Japan. At a meeting with Rasmussen, Abe stressed that the NATO chief's visit in Japan is "very meaningful when the situation surrounding North Korea is very tense." Rasmussen told a joint press conference later, "While NATO has no ambition to take on a permanent role in Asia, we see very clearly the advantage of working with like-minded partners like Japan." On North Korea, Rasmussen said NATO "strongly condemns" its provocative rhetoric and actions. He described the country as posing "a serious threat to regional and international peace, security and stability." "I urge North Korea to refrain from any further provocations and to fulfill its international obligations," he said. He said he commends "all efforts to seek peaceful solutions through dialogue," because "nobody could have an interest in further escalating the tensions in this region." The joint declaration outlined future cooperation between Japan and NATO, including continuation of their regular high-level political dialogue and the designation of the Japanese ambassador to Belgium as its representative to NATO. Emerging security challenges, including cyberdefense, nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and maritime security, are among possible areas for further dialogue and cooperation, the statement also said. Later in the day, Rasmussen held a meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida. They agreed to act promptly to draw up specific steps under the joint declaration. END