Glass Stresses Need for U.S.-Japan Alliance to Invest, Innovate; Commends Japan for Taking Leading Role in Region

By Akiko Inoue / Japan News Staff Writer

20:00 JST, June 6, 2025

U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass stressed that deterring “aggression by communist China” would be key to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific and the importance of strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance, during a speech in Tokyo on Friday.

A reception was organized by The America-Japan Society, Inc. to welcome Glass into his new ambassadorial role, where he warned that the world is standing at the defining moment of the century.

“A world dominated by a coercive and corrupt China is a world none of us should be willing to contemplate,” Glass said. He also noted that adversaries are “increasingly working in concert,” and will sow discord and spread disruption across the region.

With that worldview in mind, the U.S.-Japan alliance “is fully committed to confronting those who seek to upend the status quo,” he said.

Glass stressed that the alliance “needs to invest and innovate like never seen before, and with an urgency never seen before,” adding that, “We must be adapted, agile and ready in this new era of deterrence.”

Glass commended Japan for displaying “its determination to meet the moment and take a leading role in the region’s security.” He mentioned the recent organizational changes to Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, including the establishment of Joint Operations Command, a structure that centrally controls the three SDF branches. Regarding the changes to U.S. Forces Japan’s command structure, Glass has assured that it would “enhance the alliance’s ability to respond rapidly in any contingency.”

Regarding economic security, “it’s imperative that we reduce the world’s economic dependence on China,” Glass said, adding that the United States has been actively doing so in manufacturing.

“Working with Japan to ensure stable and secure supply chains … and safeguard companies from dangerous China … is a never-ending task,” he added. Taking rare earths as an example, which China is by far the world’s largest producer of, Glass said the United States is working with Japan and also through the Quad framework, which also includes Australia and India, to “correct imbalances.”