Japan expresses continued support for Ukraine as defense chiefs meet

Source: 毎日新聞

SINGAPORE (Kyodo) -- Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara on Sunday expressed Tokyo's continued support for Ukraine in its war with Russia as he met with his Ukrainian counterpart on the sidelines of a security forum in Singapore.

In his opening remarks, Kihara told Ukraine Defense Minister Rustem Umerov that Moscow's "outrageous act is utterly unacceptable" and vowed Japan will cooperate with the international community in assisting Kyiv with "a strong sense of crisis" as what happened in Ukraine could also occur in East Asia.

The Japanese defense minister was apparently referring to a contingency around Taiwan, a self-ruled island under increased military threat from mainland China, which claims the territory.

Umerov, who is accompanying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Singapore gathering, expressed his gratitude for the support from Japan and readiness to discuss further assistance from the Asian nation.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Tokyo has provided financial assistance to Kyiv as well as nonlethal defense equipment such as vehicles, bulletproof vests and drones.