MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th November, 2020) Australia and Japan have reached an agreement in principle on a defense treaty that is expected to strengthen their security ties and facilitate cooperation between defense forces, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday.
"Australia and Japan have reached in principle agreement on a landmark defence treaty that will further deepen the countries' strategic and security relationship," Morrison said in a statement, praising the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) as a "pivotal moment" in the history of bilateral relations.
"This agreement paves the way for a new chapter of advanced defence cooperation between our two countries. The only other such agreement that Japan has struck with another country is with the United States 60 years ago," the prime minister went on to say.
Under the new deal, the two countries' defense forces will boost practical cooperation; joint involvement in multilateral drills will be facilitated; and a clear framework on the defense forces' operations in each other's countries will be formed.
"The significance of the RAA cannot be understated. It will form a key plank of Australia's and Japan's response to an increasingly challenging security environment in our region amid more uncertain strategic circumstances. As we finalise the RAA I thank the work done by my predecessors as well as by former Japanese Prime Minister [Shinzo] Abe across six years of negotiations," Morrison concluded.
