Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba wants to “not be blinded at a numerical goal for the defense budget, such as the size in relation to GDP”. He said that on Monday at a press conference, reports ANP news agency. Ishiba thus responds to reports that the United States also wants Asian allies want them to spend 5 percent of GDP on defense.
Japan is not part of NATO, but is an important ally of the US. A spokesperson for the Pentagon told the Japanese broadcaster NHK That an increase in defense spending by allies from the Asia-Pacific would be a logical step due to “the enormous military structure of China” and the nuclear and rocket program of North Korea.
Earlier on Monday, the Japanese Prime Minister canceled his plans to be present at the NATO summit. According to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “all kinds of circumstances” were the reason to cancel. The Japanese foreign minister Takeshi Iwaya does travel to The Hague, reports Reuters news agency.
South Korea and Australia are also saying
According to Reuters, ISHIBA would have withdrawn because a planned meeting between NATO and the IP4 does not take place. The IP4 is a connection of four countries in the Asia-Pacific region that work closely with NATO: Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
Also, a meeting with US President Donald Trump would not be there for the four countries. Earlier, the South Korean president and the Australian Prime Minister have already canceled the top in The Hague.
The question is whether all NATO member states really agree on an increase in defense expenditure to 5 percent of GDP. The Member States were once over a new design text in the run-up to the NATO summit. Dwarsligger Spain also eventually tacked, because the new design text leaves more space for different interpretations. According to diplomats, the formulation has changed “we admit” to “allies say”, with which Spain sees a way out for himself.
Live blog
NATO top
Rutte kicks NATO summit with press conference: ‘No opt-out for Spain’