Cebu, Philippines, Oct. 29 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has said that U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth mentioned Japan’s defense spending at their meeting in the Philippine city of Cebu on Wednesday. “We didn’t exchange views with any specific amount or conclusion in mind,” Koizumi told reporters. At a joint press conference after his meeting with Koizumi in October last year, Hegseth denied that his country had made any request over Japanese defense spending. Hegseth’s remark at the time “says it all” when it comes to Japan’s defense spending, Koizumi said. “We’ll build up our defense capabilities concretely based on our independent judgment.” The U.S. government, meanwhile, is believed to have urged Japan to raise its defense spending to 3.5 pct of the country’s gross domestic product. The focus is how Japan will describe its defense spending plans in the planned revision of its three key security-related documents at year-end. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
