Defense & Security

Japan, France Adopt Road Map for Bilateral Cooperation

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
Flags of Japan and France

By Hirotaka Kuriyama / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

12:45 JST, December 4, 2023

DUBAI — The Japanese and French governments on Saturday adopted a road map for bilateral cooperation over the next five years.

The road map was adopted during a 10-minute phone conversation between Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and French President Emmanuel Macron during Kishida’s stay in the United Arab Emirates.

The road map is a revised version of a similar 2019 plan, and is characterized by France’s enhanced involvement in the Indo-Pacific region, with China in mind.

During their talk, the two leaders agreed to further deepen bilateral cooperation based on the understanding that Japan-French cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region is developing in a multifaceted manner through the implementation of joint training exercises, among other things.

The road map includes a policy of cooperation between the Self-Defense Forces and the French military in the areas of space, cyberspace and electromagnetic waves. It also mentions the creation of a Japan-French working group on economic security to strengthen supply chains.