Japan-United States of America Relations
Japan-U.S. Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
April 7, 2022
On April 7, commencing at 3:45 p.m. (local time; 10:45 p.m. on April 7, Japan time), for 35 minutes, Mr. HAYASHI Yoshimasa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, who is visiting Belgium, to attend the NATO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, held a meeting with the Honorable Antony Blinken, Secretary of State of the United States of America. The overview of the meeting is as follows.
- The two ministers exchanged their views on the current international affairs.
- (1) The two ministers, on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, concurred to continue imposing sanction measures against Russia and supporting Ukraine and neighboring countries, while closely coordinating between Japan and the United States and with the international community, including the G7. The two ministers also harshly condemned the killing of innocent Ukrainian civilians by Russian troops as a violation of international humanitarian law and absolutely unforgivable.
- (2) The two ministers concurred to continue close coordination between Japan and the United States in addressing various issues related to China.
- (3) The two ministers concurred to continue close coordination between Japan and the United States as well as Japan, the United States, and the Republic of Korea, on further responses, including at the UN Security Council, following North Korea’s launch of ICBM-class ballistic missile on March 24.
- (4) The two minitesters concurred to continue close coordination between Japan and the United States so that attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force, such as recent Russia’s aggreggion against Ukraine, should not be tolerated in the Indo-Pacific, especially in East Asia.
- The two ministers, in light of the increasingly severe regional security environment, confirmed that it is essential to strengthen the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-U.S. Alliance, and that Japan and the United States would strengthen their commitment to the region in all aspects, including politics, security, and economy.
- The two ministers concurred on the recognition that maintaining a free and open international order based on the rule of law is becoming increasingly important, and concurred to continue close coordination between Japan and the United States toward realizing a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific,” including holding the Japan-Australia-India-U.S. (Quad) Summit Meeting and the Japan-U.S. Summit Meeting with the President Biden’s visit to Japan at an early opportunity.
- The two ministers welcomed the efforts of both countries to stabilize the crude oil market, including the realization of IEA’s additional release of oil reserves totaling 120 million barrels. Minister Hayashi conveyed Japan’s decision to contribute 15 million barrels, to which Secretary Blinken expressed his high appreciation. The two ministers concurred to continue close coordination between Japan and the United States to ensure stable energy supply.