Japan’s military spending earns total ‘respect’ from Pentagon chief Hegseth

“It’s wonderful,” Hegseth said on Wednesday of Tokyo’s intention to accelerate the timing of a planned increase in defence spending to 2 per cent of gross domestic product, and to come up with additional plans for military investment.

Following a meeting with Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi in Tokyo, Hegseth said in a press conference the US was also making progress on creating a new headquarters for its military in Japan. He said all initial personnel were now in place for the headquarters, which will be the counterpart for a new Japanese combined military command.

Koizumi, meanwhile, confirmed there were no demands over defence spending in the meeting with Hegseth and added that all options were on the table to increase Japan’s defence capabilities.

“We will consider what is needed to protect the independence and peace of the Japanese people, without ruling anything out,” Koizumi said.