Japan’s Defense Minister Keen to Bolster Pacific Defenses with Eye on China

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:12 JST, March 28, 2026

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi on Saturday announced the establishment of a new office within the Defense Ministry in April to examine ways to strengthen the nation’s defense in the Pacific Ocean.

Visiting Iwoto, formerly Iwojima, a remote Tokyo-administered island in the Pacific, Koizumi said the pacific defense concept office will consider measures to reinforce the Self-Defense Forces’ capabilities, with China’s increasing maritime advance in mind.

“Strengthening the defense system on the Pacific side is an urgent task,” Koizumi told reporters. “A vast area has become a vacuum in terms of defense.”

Plans under consideration for Iwoto Island include the development of harbor facilities and a radar network.

The same day, Koizumi attended a joint Japan-U.S. memorial service for the war dead on the island, which was the site of a fierce battle during the Pacific War. “We will deepen the Japan-U.S. alliance and build an unshakeable peace,” he said.