Tokyo, January 14: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the American presence in Japan is crucial for efforts to meet new security threats and challenges in the region.
Gates said in a speech at Keio University in Tokyo that American forces need to remain in Japan to deter North Korea and counter China.
“Without such a presence, North Korea’s military provocations could be even more outrageous, or worse, China might behave more assertively towards its neighbors,” Gates said
Gates also says advances by China’s military in cyber and anti-satellite warfare could challenge the ability of US forces to operate in the Pacific.
“Without the forward presence of US forces in Japan, there would be less information sharing and coordination, and we would know less about regional threats and the military capabilities of our potential adversaries,” he added.
The remarks come as senior officials in Beijing have strongly condemned the several rounds of joint US-South Korea naval war games recently conducted close to Chinese waters. China says the drills were a fresh provocation “to China and its surrounding.”
The North accuses US President Barack Obama of plotting with regional allies to topple the country’s government, insisting that its nuclear program is a deterrent against US forces in the region.
The presence of almost 50,000 American troops in Japan dates back to World War II and has repeatedly sparked anger among Japanese people.
Tens of thousands of Japanese have held several rallies against the American military bases in the country over the past months.
——–Agencies