Press Releases
Courtesy Call on Foreign Minister IWAYA by General Xavier T. Brunson
May 20, 2025
On May 20, commencing from 3:30p.m. for approximately 30 minutes, Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, received a courtesy call by General Xavier T. Brunson, Commander, United Nations Command/Combined Forces Command/United States Forces Korea, during his visit to Japan. The overview of the courtesy call is as follows.
- At the beginning, Foreign Minister Iwaya welcomed General Brunson’s visit to Japan, and expressed that he highly values the role of the United Nations Command (UNC) and the U.S. Forces in the Republic of Korea amidst an increasingly severe security environment in the region, such as nuclear and missile activities of North Korea, and that he appreciates the activities of the UNC-Rear which supports efforts by the UN Forces, including the surveillance activities by the UNC Sending States against illicit ship-to-ship transfers by North Korea. Minister Iwaya also stated that the Japan-U.S. Alliance, the U.S.-ROK Alliance, and their strategic coordination are indispensable for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, and that Japan looks forward to continuously enhancing the relationship with the UNC.
- General Brunson stated that Japan-U.S. Alliance and Japan-U.S.-ROK trilateral partnership have become even more important to address various challenges in the increasingly severe security enviornment in the region and expressed appreciation for the assistance extended from Japan for UNC and UNC-Rear. Both sides reaffirmed that they will continue to coordinate closely.